Afghanistan experienced a second day without telecommunications and internet services on Tuesday after the Taliban authorities cut the fiber optic network.

The Taliban began cutting communications and internet in some provinces earlier this month to prevent what they described as “immorality.”

On Monday night into Tuesday, mobile phone signals and internet service gradually weakened until the “total national connectivity dropped below 1% (of normal levels), making it a complete outage,” according to NetBlocks, an internet and cybersecurity monitoring organization.

First Time

This is the first time communications have been cut since the Taliban returned to power in 2021 and imposed laws based on a strict religious interpretation.

Najibullah, 42, a shop owner in Kabul, said: “We are like the blind without phones and internet.”

He added: “Our business depends on the phone. Orders are delivered via phone. It feels like a holiday; everyone is at home. The market is paralyzed.”

Minutes before the internet and communications were cut, a government source said the outage would continue “until further notice.”

Complete Communications Cut

The source, who asked to remain anonymous, added that the service “will be cut gradually tonight, with between eight to nine thousand communication poles to be disconnected.” He continued: “There is no other means or system of communication.. the banking sector, customs, and everything across the country will be affected.”

NetBlocks said a “complete nationwide communications outage has begun,” noting that the incident “matches a deliberate service disconnection.”

Agence France-Presse lost mobile phone contact with its Kabul office around 5:45 p.m.

“Cut Off from My Family”

A 40-year-old Afghan living abroad said: “Because of the communications and internet cut, I am completely cut off from my family in Kabul.”

He added: “I don’t know what’s happening, I am really worried.”

Ignoring Official Warnings

Reports said the Taliban leader ignored warnings from some officials earlier this month about the economic repercussions of the internet cut and ordered authorities to proceed with a nationwide ban. Sources said on Tuesday that most mobile networks are down.

Meanwhile, a UN source said: “Operations have been severely affected, reverting to wireless communications and limited satellite links.”

Telephone services are often routed over the internet using the same fiber lines, especially in countries lacking strong communication infrastructure.

In recent weeks, internet connections have been very slow or intermittent.

Combating Immorality

On September 16, the spokesperson for Balkh province (north) Attaullah Zaid announced a complete ban on fiber optic internet and “network disconnection” by order of the Taliban’s supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada.

He wrote on social media: “This measure was taken to combat immorality, and alternative options will be provided across the country to meet communication needs.”

The same restrictions were imposed in the northern provinces of Badakhshan and Takhar, as well as in Kandahar, Helmand, Nangarhar, and Uruzgan in the south.

In 2024, Kabul announced that the fiber optic network deployed by previous authorities at the start of the third millennium, spanning 9,350 kilometers, represents a “priority to bring the country closer to the rest of the world” and “eradicate poverty.”