Nasim Radio Studio, Nili, Daikundi
August 7, 2025
Nili, Daikundi Province — The Afghanistan Journalists Center (AFJC) today condemned the detention of four journalists and the shutdown of Nasim Radio in Daikundi Province, amid reports of equipment seizure by local intelligence authorities. These actions represent a troubling escalation in the efforts of de facto authorities to suppress independent reporting and restrict press freedom in the region.
A journalist in Daikundi Province, who requested anonymity due to safety concerns, told AFJC that members of the de facto Provincial Directorate of Intelligence (GDI) detained Saifullah Rezaei, a reporter for Nasim Radio, along with Qudratullah Mosawi of Seday-e-Qarya Radio, while they were covering an event attended by local authorities and elders in the provincial capital, Nili, around 1 p.m. on August 6.
The journalists reportedly had their smartphones and a camera confiscated by the GDI and were taken to the intelligence directorate headquarters for questioning. The source stated that the intelligence agency released Qudratullah Mosawi after two hours. However, they summoned the head of Nasim Radio, Sultan Ali Jawadi, along with another station reporter, Mujtaba Qasemi for further investigation, allegedly accusing them of propaganda against the de facto authorities following the publication of a UN report on the activities of Islamic State Khorasan/Daesh and Anti-Taliban armed groups in Afghanistan.
Another journalist in the province, who closely followed the incident, said that all three staff members of Nasim Radio were released around 11:30 p.m., but the intelligence officers seized the station’s main broadcasting computer, which led to the shutdown of the radio station and its local branch in neighboring Bamian Province.
This is not the first time Nasim Radio and its staff have faced harassment. In October 2023, Sultan Ali Jawadi and two of his colleagues were detained, allegedly for publishing propaganda against the de facto authorities. The station remained closed for five months, and the station head was sentenced to one year in prison.
AFJC calls on de facto authorities to immediately return all confiscated equipment and ensure that media outlet can operate freely and safely.
AFJC states: “The detention of journalists and the shutdown of a local radio station in Daikundi is a clear attack on press freedom. We urge the de facto authorities to cease targeting journalists and to allow independent media to serve the public without fear or interference.”