EU Lawmaker Warns of \u2018Digital North Korea\u2019 as Taliban Tighten Online Controls; UNICEF Urges Lifting of Girls\u2019 Education Ban
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\nA European Parliament member has warned that Afghanistan is turning into a \u201cdigital North Korea\u201d after the Taliban tightened internet restrictions and blocked several social media platforms, while UNICEF has renewed calls for the restoration of girls\u2019 education amid a deepening national crisis.<\/p>\n
According to Deutsche Welle, EU lawmaker Hannah Neumann said on X (formerly Twitter) that the Taliban\u2019s recent two-day internet shutdown was merely a \u201ctest phase\u201d of a broader campaign of censorship. Access to platforms including TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook, and Instagram has reportedly been restricted, with fiber-optic internet in Kandahar now reserved for government offices and private businesses.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, UNICEF warned that Afghanistan\u2019s education system remains in severe crisis but could still recover if secondary education for girls resumes and investment in schools increases. The UN agency said that over two million girls remain barred from classrooms since the Taliban takeover in 2021, urging the authorities to \u201csafeguard children\u2019s right to learning.\u201d<\/p>\n
UNICEF also cited worsening economic hardship and recent earthquakes as aggravating factors, pushing more Afghan children out of school to work. The agency called on both the Taliban and international donors to act urgently, emphasizing that inclusive education is vital for Afghanistan\u2019s stability and development.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
EU Lawmaker Warns of \u2018Digital North Korea\u2019 as Taliban Tighten Online Controls; UNICEF Urges Lifting of Girls\u2019 Education Ban —————————————————- A European Parliament member has warned that Afghanistan is turning into a \u201cdigital North Korea\u201d after the Taliban tightened internet restrictions and blocked several social media platforms, while UNICEF has renewed calls for the restoration …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":135385,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_108372464460192_245495985553329":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-135386","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-afghanistan"],"yoast_head":"\n