Entertainment
Nationwide communications blackout hits Afghanistan: report
A huge communications blackout hit Afghanistan on Monday, weeks after Taliban authorities began severing fibre optic connections in multiple provinces to prevent “vice”.
“A nation-wide telecoms blackout is now in effect,” said Netblocks, a watchdog organisation that monitors cybersecurity and internet governance.
“We’re now observing national connectivity at 14% of ordinary levels.”
The watchdog said the incident “appears consistent with the intentional disconnection of service”.
AFP lost contact with its bureau in the capital Kabul around 6:15pm (1315 GMT), including mobile phone service.
Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities began a crackdown on internet access earlier this month, severing connections in multiple provinces.
The move, ordered by Taliban Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, effectively shut down high-speed internet in several regions.
Fibre optic internet was completely banned in northern Balkh province on the leader’s orders, provincial spokesman Attaullah Zaid said on September 16.
“This measure was taken to prevent vice, and alternative options will be put in place across the country to meet connectivity needs,” he wrote on social media.
At the time, AFP correspondents reported the same restrictions in the northern provinces of Badakhshan and Takhar, as well as in Kandahar, Helmand, Nangarhar and Uruzgan in the south.
Over the past several weeks, internet connections have been extremely slow or intermittent.
In 2024, Kabul had touted the 9,350-kilometre fibre optic network — largely built by former US-backed governments — as a “priority” to bring the country closer to the rest of the world and lift it out of poverty.
Since regaining power in 2021, the Taliban have instituted numerous restrictions.
Meghan Markle is opening up about making mistakes as she creates her own lifestyle brand.
The Duchess of Sussex, who sat with Harper’s Bazaar on their latest cover for December, spoke about little setbacks as she works on ‘As Ever.’
“I can give myself the same grace as a founder,” she notes. “There’s no such thing as perfect. I, too, get to make mistakes… There’s also not a lot of fun in trying to be perfect. So why try to do that if you want to have fun?”
“My office is right by the kitchen, and I love that I can work from home. It’s a great luxury,” she added, before noting how her kids fill up a large part of her day.
Prince Harry left the Royal Family back in 2020 alongside wife Meghan Markle and son, Prince Archie. The couple later accused the Royal Family of showcasing racism towards their son and publicly shared their grievances on television. Harry and Meghan now live in California, where they also welcomed their daughter, Princess Lilibet.
Meghan Markle is opening up about the virtues of being a mother in her latest confession.
Speaking to Harper’s Bazaar for their December cover story, the Duchess of Sussex admitted that her children are constantly learning on the go.
“I’m a mom with kids at that age where they are constantly learning something new,” she told the magazine.
“I watch them face things that feel completely insurmountable every day. But you can remember and say, ‘I know it seems really hard right now, but trust me, that’s going to come so easily soon,’” Meghan says.
Meghan shares Prince Archie, 6, and daughter Princess Lilibet, 4, with husband Prince Harry.
Speaking about her wish for the kids, Meghan adds: “I hope they see the value of being brave. They saw it when the jam was just a pot on the stove, bubbling. When you’re young, I think you are a little bit more fearless. As we get older, we lose some of that.”
There was a time when Demi Lovato was in depression. But she credits Jordan Jutes, her husband, for helping her in one of her rough periods.
In an interview with Who What Wear, the pop icon recalls the hardest time she faced while making her 2023 album, Holy Fvck.
“Every album that I’ve written has served its purpose. Some albums were more emotional than others,” the Heart Attack hitmaker shares, noting that she started work on the album after her rehab in 2021. “Holy Fvck was probably, dare I say, the most healing, and it served its purpose.”
In the making, Jutes was also a contributor. Together, the pair wrote several songs of the album, including Substance, Happy Ending, and City of Angels.
“We became friends before we became lovers,” she reveals. “I opened up to him because I was going through a really rough time when I made Holy Fvck.”
The award-winning artist continues, “I had just come out of treatment, and I was newly sober and raw with my emotions. I had nothing to medicate with,” adding that Jutes “was there for me as a friend, helping me get through this deep depression I was in.”
Moreover, Demi also looks back at her past relationships, adding they didn’t work out because she “hadn’t taken care of myself yet.”
“The universe rewards you when you do the therapeutic work on yourself, [and] I had to do the work.”
“Because of that, the universe provided. I got myself ready for a life by myself, and then I was able to share it with somebody else,” she concludes.
2026 World Cup draw: Top seeds revealed in latest FIFA rankings
Nvidia CEO Dismisses Concerns of an AI Bubble. Investors Remain Skeptical
‘No fun in being perfect’
-
Tech4 days agoNew carbon capture method uses water and pressure to remove CO₂ from emissions at half current costs
-
Politics6 days agoBritish-Pakistani honoured for transforming UK halal meat industry
-
Business5 days agoThese 9 Common Money Mistakes Are Eating Your Income
-
Sports4 days agoTexas A&M officer scolds South Carolina wide receiver after touchdown; department speaks out
-
Tech6 days ago$25 Off Exclusive Blue Apron Coupon for November 2025
-
Sports5 days agoApple scrapping MLS Season Pass service in ’26
-
Business5 days agoWhat’s behind Rachel Reeves’s hokey cokey on income tax rises?
-
Fashion7 days agoAdidas & Patrick Mahomes expand NIL programme with Texas Tech athletes