While the world commemorates September 28 as “International Day for Universal Access to Information,” in Afghanistan not only is there no news of access to information, but the voice of the media has been silenced under the boots of Taliban censorship and pressure.

Local sources in Khost say that a young girl named Aqila was killed in this province by her two brothers.

Local sources in Herat have confirmed that after Alia’s arrest, dozens of female bloggers, out of fear of a similar fate, have not only stopped their digital activities but have also deleted their entire content archives.

Richard Bennett, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, has warned that the Taliban’s ban on the education of women and girls constitutes “extremism” and puts the future of Afghanistan at risk of destruction.