Taliban's intelligence forces detain Afghan radio host

Kabul [Afghanistan], July 26 : The Taliban's intelligence forces on Tuesday detained radio host and senior reporter Alauddin Erkin, a media report said.
The Salam Watandar reporter was interrogated by the Taliban intelligence in the province of Faryab, Khaama Press reported citing the Afghanistan Journalists Center (AFJC).
"Aladdin was arrested in Faryab province at 10:30 this morning by the intelligence of this province in Maimana," AFJC said in a tweet.
"Local sources told the Afghan Journalists Center that Irkin was investigated because of his procramme 'How to work in the media' and he was released after about 1.5 hours," the tweet added.
The Salam Watandar radio service said that Erkin was detained by Talha, the Taliban's deputy intelligence officer, local media reported.
The reason behind his detention was not mentioned by the intelligence forces, it added.
Earlier, on Sunday, the AFJC expressed concern at the incident in which the female host of Dost Radio in Nangarhar province in eastern Afghanistan, Selagi Ehsaas was attacked by unidentified gunmen.
AFJC condemned violence against the media and journalists after the beating of Selagi Ehsaas, who was returning from work on July 20, when she was stopped by unidentified gunmen and pistol-whipped in Moi Mubarak village of Surkh Rod district in Nangarhar province, reported Khaama Press.
Over 6,000 journalists have lost their jobs and 287 media outlets have closed after the Taliban came into power in Afghanistan in August last year, local media reported citing a recent report from the Association of Free Journalists of Afghanistan said.
According to UNAMA, there have been significant changes in the country's media landscape, including the closure of more than half of the free media, the evacuation of hundreds of journalists, and rising work restrictions, violence, and threats against journalists.
Notably, the ever-increasing restrictions against media in Afghanistan have also drawn widespread criticism globally with the United Nations (UN) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) decrying the arrests, demanding the Taliban stop harassing local journalists and stifling freedom of speech through continued detentions and threats.
With the consistent arbitrary arrests of journalists by the Taliban, the media in Afghanistan faces several restrictions. In the last year, several blood-curdling incidents of harassment of Afghan journalists and media workers have been recorded.
Since the Taliban took over Afghanistan in mid-August last year, it rolled back women's rights advances and media freedom revoking the efforts on gender equality and freedom of speech in the country.
Over 45 per cent of journalists have quit since the Taliban assumed power.
The Taliban had promised women's rights, media freedom, and amnesty for government officials in the group's first news conference after the takeover in August. However, activists, former government employees, and journalists among others continue to face retribution.