THE Taliban has arbitrarily detained journalists 256 times since their takeover of Afghanistan three years ago, the United Nations warned today, urging authorities to protect the media.

Journalists in the war-torn country were working under “challenging conditions” and more than 360 journalists have suffered rights breaches since 2021, the UN mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA) and the UN Human Rights Office said.

Its report documented 130 cases of “torture and ill-treatment” and warned that the media sector has shrunk dramatically.

Special representative of UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres, Roza Otunbayeva, said: “[Journalists] often face unclear rules on what they can and cannot report, running the risk of intimidation and arbitrary detention for perceived criticism.

“We urge the de facto authorities to ensure the safety and security of all journalists and media workers as they carry out their tasks, and to fully recognise the importance of women working in the media.”

The Taliban called the report “far from actual realities.”

It denied that 256 arrests had been made, saying that those who were arrested had committed a crime.

Alleged crimes included encouraging people to act against the system, defaming government and providing false and baseless reports.

Its Foreign Ministry added that women continued to work in the sector, subject to Islamic morality rules such as covering their faces and working separately from men.

Before the Taliban regained power in 2021, Afghanistan had some 8,400 media workers, including 1,700 women.

Only 560 women remain out of the current total of 5,100 workers.

The Taliban has been cracking down on women’s rights, including by shutting them out of the public eye.

Afghanistan has slipped down the Reporters Without Borders’ press freedom ranking of 180 countries from 122nd place to 178.