Taliban arrests TV anchor

AN Afghan television news presenter said he had been freed by the Taliban after being detained for a day for reporting the hardline Islamists had banned foreign dramas from local TV screens.

Rights groups have condemned a decline in media freedoms and increasing attacks on journalists since the Taliban swept back to power last year, with the United Nations calling for an end to “intimidation and threats against journalists”.

TOLOnews, the country’s leading independent television network, said presenter Bahram Aman had been detained along with news director Khpolwak Sapai and legal adviser Nafi Khaleeq.

The Taliban had banned dramas or soaps unless they had an Islamic theme but only now are enforcing that, which TOLOnews reported on.