The Taliban's massive social media presence that's being ignored

Austin Bodetti, alaraby, The Taliban's massive social media presence that's being ignored, 22 Nov 2017 "The insurgents have employed social media for more creative purposes, creating Facebook profiles of attractive women to trick Western soldiers into disclosing intelligence. Their affiliates in Pakistan even tried to recruit propagandists for an online magazine through a Facebook page." I have written about this phenomenon in the past, and have something in my next book relating to the Taliban.

Where is my name? Afghan women protest to claim their identities

ABC (Australia), Where is my name? Afghan women protest to claim their identities "A group of Afghan women have launched a social media campaign to protest the country's custom of erasing women's names." See #WhereIsMyName?

Afghanistan: Breaking down cyber barriers

qantara.de, Breaking down cyber barriers "Groups of teenage girls huddle around computers in a bright blue classroom, some typing furiously, others browsing blogs with the latest fashion trends. Just outside, people go about their daily business in Afghanistan's bustling city of Herat, famed for its ancient fortress and beautiful blue-tiled mosque.

"A few months earlier, these teenagers didn't know how to switch on a computer. These days, the girls at Goharshad Begum High School in Afghanistan's third-largest city, post to Facebook and Twitter, update their blogs and code with ease."  More info here: Digital Citizen Fund (DCF)

Islamic State's 'Radio Caliphate'

catchnews.com, Islamic State's Radio Caliphate, internet system in Afghanistan reportedly destroyed; But locals still hear broadcast

globox.tv

AFP/AhramOnline, Afghan web-TV pioneers seek new screen revolution " Globox.tv is the latest product of a media revolution in Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban regime -- which banned television, music and cinema -- and the station's bosses hope its bold programmes will attract younger viewers."

Afghanistan, Hizb ut-Tahrir and the net

Mujib Mashal, Time.com, Missed Opportunity in Afghanistan: We Forgot to Pay the Preachers, 27 Feb 2013 "While only a small portion of Afghans have access to the Internet, the videos are widely distributed through CD sales as well as Bluetooth sharing. Additionally, Eslah distributes PDFs and publishes magazines as well as ready-made powerpoint slideshows, and pamphlets such as “Heaven is ready, are you?” or “How to defend the Koran?” The poster-boy for their TV and internet evangelism is Mullah Abdul Sallam Abed, whose passionate sermons are aired on their radio and its videos often packaged online. A search for YouTube videos brings up more than 300 videos of Abed’s sermons."

Social media bug bites Afghans

AFP/thecitizen.co.tz, Social media bug bites Afghans  "Like the Taliban, Dostum [Abdul Rashid Dostum] knows that he can use the traditional channels of local elders and mullahs to address and mobilise poor and illiterate Afghans who make up most of the population in rural areas.

""We launch gatherings and rallies in some provinces, mainly rural areas to communicate and address those people who have no access to the Internet.

""But we see social media as an effective way to communicate our messages with the educated Afghans inside and outside the country, as well as with the European and Americans who are engaged or interested in Afghanistan's affairs.""

Taliban video

AFP/Herald Sun, Global chorus of outrage after Afghan woman executed by Taliban for adultery, 9 Jul 2012 "Senior US and British figures have led a global chorus of outrage after the emergence of a shocking video showing the Taliban publicly executing a 22-year-old Afghan woman accused of adultery."

U.S. Twitter war vs. Taliban flares

U.S. Twitter war vs. Taliban flares - Austin Wright - POLITICO.com "

"The Twitter tiff: It’s a realm usually reserved for celebrities like Lindsay Lohan and Kim Kardashian.

"On Sunday, though, Twitter yet again became a field in the battle for hearts and minds in Afghanistan. In the latest flareup in an ongoing social-media campaign, coalition forces engaged the Taliban in a war of words, delivered 140 characters at a time."

Taliban 'jailbreak' video

Tribune.com, Bannu attack: Taliban release video of brazen jailbreak

"Footag­e shows guards deploy­ed to protec­t the jail offere­d no resist­ance."

'Afghanistan announces satellite tender'

Guardian, Afghanistan announces satellite tender, 9 Apr 2012 "International partner sought to put Afghanistan's first satellite in orbit to improve the country's television and internet coverage."

Voice of Jihad Q&A service

Usman Sharifi, AFP, Taliban offer question-and-answer service online, 27 Mar 2012 "The facility on Voice of Jihad, the official website of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan -- the Taliban's own name for their movement -- allows readers to submit queries to spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid." Useful summary.

Female-only cybercafe

Afghanistan opens first women-only internet cafe

www.reuters.com

KABUL (Reuters) - 'Afghanistan opened its first female-only internet cafe on Thursday, hoping to give women a chance to connect to the world without verbal and sexual harassment and free from the unwanted gazes of their countrymen.'

The Taliban's Internet Strategy

Useful article/op-ed:

Bashir Ahmad Gwakh, RFE/RL, The Taliban's Internet Strategy, 10 Sep 2011 "Although the Taliban has numerous blogs and websites, two of their official websites, Al-Emarah.net and Shahamat.info (mostly videos), are their main official tools of propaganda. "Along with pictures and videos, they provide text materials in Arabic, Pashto, Dari, Persian, Urdu, and English."

I've been looking at Taliban sites for several years - there has been a long-term presence online (I wrote about them in Virtually Islamic).

'U.S. Underwrites Internet Detour Around Censors'

NY Times, U.S. Underwrites Internet Detour Around Censors, 12 June 2011 [picked up via yesterday's Observer]

"In one of the most ambitious efforts, United States officials say, the State Department and Pentagon have spent at least $50 million to create an independent cellphone network in Afghanistan using towers on protected military bases inside the country. It is intended to offset the Taliban’s ability to shut down the official Afghan services, seemingly at will.

"The effort has picked up momentum since the government of President Hosni Mubarak shut down the Egyptian Internet in the last days of his rule. In recent days, the Syrian government also temporarily disabled much of that country’s Internet, which had helped protesters mobilize."

In relation to this, I found Deutsche Welle, Austrian 'FunkFeuer' helps American 'Internet-in-a-suitcase' project, 17 Jun 2011 "An Austrian wireless networking project that plants Wi-Fi antennae across rooftops is a key element in an American government "liberation technology" project designed to circumvent and thwart Internet filters, censorship and surveillance."

Sounds interesting. When I've got more time, I'll provide some further information.

Taliban Tweets

GMA News Online, Taliban boosts propaganda with English tweets, 13 May 2011 "In a move seen as an expansion of its propaganda's reach beyond the Afghan world, the Taliban has recently started posting messages in English on its Twitter account several months after tweeting only in pure Pashto, one of the Middle Eastern country's official languages." Widely reported

Taliban Employs Modern Weapons In 'War of Words'

Bashir Ahmad Gwakh, Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Taliban Employs Modern Weapons In 'War of Words', 16 Mar 2011: "'Wars today cannot be won without media. Media aims at the heart rather than the body, [and] if the heart is defeated, the battle is won.'

"This conclusion, reached by Abdul Sattar Maiwandi in an interview published recently on the website Al-Emarah, is not groundbreaking. The importance of winning the 'war of words,' as Maiwandi describes it, to winning an actual war has long been understood.

"But consider the source. Maiwandi is the editor in chief of Al-Emarah, which is an official Taliban website. And while the Taliban officially banned photography, movies, and the use of the Internet when it was in power in Afghanistan -- considering them un-Islamic -- today the militant group cannot deny the potential of such media as tools of propaganda and recruitment.""

Useful article, with screenshots and analysis. I write about some of this in iMuslims and other work. Also check out some of the feedback ...

Afghan photos

Reuters, U.S. army apologizes over "repugnant" Afghan photos, 21 Mar 2011

"Germany's Der Spiegel magazine published pictures Monday of American troops posing over the bloodied body of a man it said had been killed illegally in Afghanistan, drawing an apology from the U.S. army."

Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan

Akhtar Jamal, Afghan Taliban rejects peace talks, 25 Oct 2010 "In an electronic interview sent via internet, Maulavi Abdul Kabir, member of the “Leadership Council of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” said that the peace council (established by President Karzai) “consists of people who practically support the Americans, though they claim being Jihadic figures and leaders.” He said that “by siding with the American invaders, they (council members) have forfeited their credibility in the eyes of the Afghans.”"

Afghanistan net crackdown

Reuters, Afghan Journal, Afghanistan cracks down on Internet cafes for allowing porn, 24 Oct 2010 "Seventeen internet cafes have been shutdown in the Afghan capital Kabul, for allowing their clients to surf porn websites and access other unspecified “un-Islamic websites”, the local Pajhwok news agency reported."

Also see Muhammad Hassan Khitab, pajhwok.com, ATRA shuts down 17 net cafes in Kabul, 18 Oct 2010"The net cafes had been warned last week not to allow customers to look at porn or other un-Islamic websites in their venues or face action, Muhammad Ibrahim Abbasi, a member of Afghan Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (ATRA), said."