New Delhi

Taking pictures or videos of "living things" has now been banned for government functionaries in Afghanistan's Kandahar province, the birthplace of the Taliban movement whose present-day disciples rule the South Asian country. 

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Authorities in the southern Afghan province ordered its officials on Sunday (Feb 18) not to take pictures or videos of "living things".

In a letter addressed to civil and military officials, the Interior provincial department directed them "to refrain from taking pictures of living things in your formal and informal gatherings, because it causes more harm than good".

It, however, said that text or audio content on official activities was allowed.

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The directive, confirmed as authentic to the news agency AFP by a spokesperson for Kandahar's governor, specifies that these instructions are solely applicable to provincial officials and not to the general public or independent media.

The ban on television and images of living beings echoes the previous Taliban rule from 1996 to 2001. Since the Taliban's return to power over two years ago, various media organisations have voluntarily refrained from featuring images of people and animals.

Also watch | Afghanistan: Taliban jailing 'unprotected' women to keep them safe

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Notably, Afghanistan's central government departments run by the Taliban regularly share images of high-ranking officials in diplomatic meetings with foreign dignitaries.

Taliban rule in Afghanistan so far

Meanwhile, the connection between the Taliban, Al-Qaeda, and Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) remains strong and mutually beneficial for all the parties involved with the Taliban as current rulers of Afghanistan acting as the nucleus of the entire set-up harbouring terror activities, a UN report indicated last year. 

Just a month after coming to power, the Taliban banned girls from secondary education in September 2021. 

On December 21, 2022, the Taliban banned women from attending universities. 

Also read | Explained | Taliban have put Afghan clock back to 1990s’ autocracy: UN report

WION was the first to report in January 2023 about the Taliban ruling in the Balkh province that prohibited male doctors from treating female patients. 

The Taliban stormed to power virtually unchallenged after the withdrawal of US-led forces from the country in August 2021. The regime has not received international recognition, except from China.