Afghanistan has plunged into a digital darkness unlike anything in its history, as a sweeping internet and telecommunications blackout entered its third day on Wednesday, October 1, 2025. The sudden shutdown, which began on the evening of Monday, September 29, has left millions of Afghans cut off from each other and the outside world, sparking alarm among citizens, businesses, aid organizations, and international observers.
The blackout has affected fiber-optic internet, mobile data services, and virtually all forms of digital communication across the country. According to network analysts and global watchdogs like NetBlocks, nearly all internet connectivity in Afghanistan disappeared by Monday afternoon. The move represents the first nationwide shutdown of its kind in Afghanistan, described by the London-based NetBlocks as a “comprehensive, total blackout.”
Unlike other countries with centralized internet controls—think of China’s “Great Firewall”—Afghanistan’s infrastructure does not have a single point of failure. Doug Madory, a network analyst at Kentik Network Intelligence, told DW that “the Taliban are able to order telecom companies to effectively disconnect the country from the internet.” He ruled out technical failure as a cause, explaining, “If the whole country relied on a single fiber optic cable that got cut by some accident, then it could explain this. It’s just not the case that the infrastructure has that single point of failure.”
The Taliban government, which has ruled Afghanistan since 2021, has not provided an official explanation for the outage and did not respond to requests for comment from international media. However, a diplomatic official, speaking anonymously to The New York Times, said that Taliban supreme leader Sheikh Haibatullah Akhundzada ordered the blackout to prevent the diffusion of “vice.” This echoes earlier justifications from provincial officials, who said a partial blackout in northern provinces earlier in September was intended to “prevent immorality.”
Private Afghan news channel TOLO, quoting an unnamed official, reported that the Taliban have given network operators a one-week deadline to shut down higher-speed 3G and 4G mobile internet services. The plan, according to TOLO and confirmed by DW’s reporting, is to revert all mobile internet access to slow-speed 2G, making it impossible to send anything other than basic text messages. “To go back to 2G, that would be without precedent,” Madory said, noting that such a move has not been seen anywhere else in the world.
The consequences of this blackout have been swift and severe. Ordinary Afghans now find it nearly impossible to communicate within the country or with the outside world. Banking services have ground to a halt, planes have been grounded, and even the United Nations has reported that distributing humanitarian aid has become nearly impossible. According to a source in Kabul familiar with aid operations, cash transfers and aid deliveries to vulnerable communities outside the capital have been virtually halted, as no flights have departed for two days and U.N. staff cannot contact colleagues in other regions.
For Afghanistan’s battered economy, the timing could not be worse. “Currently, 80% of business is conducted online. We are already facing major challenges. Don’t widen the gap between the people and the government any further,” urged Khan Jan Alokozai, vice president of the Afghan Chamber of Commerce, on X (formerly Twitter) after the initial shutdown. Fiber-optic internet is the backbone for companies, banks, government agencies, and media houses. Their inability to function puts additional strain on already fragile central administrative structures.
Security expert Bismillah Taban, speaking to DW, warned that “the disruption of the internet marks the beginning of widespread repression across Afghanistan. The Taliban could expand their crackdown and evade international oversight. This is a very serious concern.” The sentiment was echoed by Beh Lih Yi, regional director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, who called the blackout “an unprecedented escalation of censorship that will undermine journalists’ work and the public’s right to information.” Beh Lih Yi added, “The Taliban should end their cycle of repression and unconditionally restore internet access, which is an essential tool for news gathering.”
The blackout’s impact on education, especially for girls and women, has been devastating. Already barred from attending schools and universities, many Afghan girls had turned to online education as their last lifeline. Sahraa Karimi, an Afghan filmmaker who teaches remotely, lamented, “My students had Wi-Fi, but now it no longer works. I read in the news that the Taliban have shut down the internet in many cities. I’m heartbroken — how am I supposed to teach the girls now?”
Pashtana Durrani, founder of the online school network LEARN Afghanistan, explained to DW, “When the Taliban cut off the internet, it’s not just a technical issue. It’s an attack on the country’s future.” For many students, the internet was their only link to teachers and lessons. “Every blackout sets Afghan youth further back, weakens the intellectual foundation of the country, and deepens the despair of the younger generation.”
Activists inside Afghanistan are also raising their voices in protest. “Shutting down the internet is the final step toward backwardness, ignorance, and destruction,” one woman said in a video message to DW. Another called it “a direct attack on the dignity, freedom, and future of a nation.”
The blackout comes at a time when Afghanistan faces multiple humanitarian crises. Aid workers have been struggling to respond to the aftermath of a 6.0-magnitude earthquake in eastern Afghanistan that killed more than 1,400 people in late August, as well as to the influx of more than a million Afghan refugees from Iran. With the internet down, U.N. agencies and other international organizations have been unable to coordinate relief efforts effectively. On Tuesday, the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan called on the Taliban to restore internet and telecommunications immediately, citing the country’s battered economy and ongoing humanitarian challenges.
The Taliban’s move to isolate Afghanistan digitally is part of a broader pattern of restricting freedoms since their return to power. The government has banned girls’ education beyond sixth grade and imposed sweeping limitations on individual freedoms and communications, often citing religious grounds. The current blackout, which some officials say may last 30 days or more, is rare even among authoritarian regimes. As The New York Times notes, even in countries like Syria, nationwide telecommunications blackouts have been limited in duration and scope.
As Afghanistan enters yet another day in the dark, the sense of dread and uncertainty only deepens. For many, the internet was more than just a tool—it was a lifeline to the world, to opportunity, and to hope. Now, with that connection severed, Afghans are left to wonder what comes next and how long they will remain cut off from the rest of humanity.
