The Associated Press (AP) has retracted a story after incorrectly quoting a Taliban official on Afghanistan’s recent Internet blackout, admitting it mistakenly relied on an unverified WhatsApp message. The correction comes after nearly four days of near-total Internet and mobile disruption across Afghanistan, a move widely believed to have been ordered by Taliban Supreme Leader Haibatullah Akhundzada.
According to reports, Taliban agents were seen severing fiber-optic cables in several provinces in mid-September. By Sunday, Internet access had collapsed nationwide, crippling commerce, grounding flights at Kabul airport, and leaving humanitarian groups and U.N. teams unable to operate. Aid organizations warned that the blackout threatened “significant harm to the Afghan people” and risked worsening what is already one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
The AP initially reported that the Taliban denied responsibility, citing a WhatsApp message claiming worn-out cables were being replaced. The outlet later retracted the story, clarifying the message was not sent by official Taliban channels but by an unaffiliated Afghan user with a similar name. The same statement appeared on X from a Taliban sympathizer.
When access partially returned on Wednesday, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid accused the AP of fabricating claims, stating, “The Associated Press claim regarding the justification for blocking the Internet is incorrect and fabricated.” He insisted that official Taliban messages are issued only through recognized channels.
The Taliban later said cellphone services were “gradually being restored,” but gave no explanation for the shutdown. Residents in Kabul and other cities described widespread confusion during the outage and relief when service resumed. “It’s like Eid al-Adha; it’s like preparing to go for prayer. We are very happy from the bottom of our hearts,” one delivery driver told the BBC.
For many Afghans—particularly women banned from education and families separated by exile—the blackout was devastating, cutting off their only link to the outside world.
