Following the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, major tech companies are
allegedly facing a dilemma about how to moderate the terror group’s online p


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Tech & Terrorism: No, Tech Companies Should Not Give The Taliban A Platform
Online

 

(New York, N.Y.) – Following the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, major tech
companies are allegedly facing adilemma
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about how to moderate the terror group’s online presence. At issue is whether
to recognize a transfer of power to the group in the war-torn country.
Compounding matters is the Taliban’sapparent savvy
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social media usage and ability to stay within companies’ content rules despite
its extremist ideology.

 

“The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) has long called for clear guidelines
targeting the very ‘worst of the worst’ terrorist material, including content
by and in support of internationally designated terrorist organizations and
individuals. The Taliban—which is designated by the United Nations for its
support of Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda and represents the ‘worst of the
worst’—clearly falls within these parameters,” said CEP Executive Director
David Ibsen. “We are not debating definitions of ‘misinformation’ here. Giving
the Taliban a platform and allowing it to remain online in any capacity poses
significant risks to public safety and security. This should not be a difficult
decision.”

 

In February 2020, U.S. and Taliban negotiators reached a preliminary deal that
demanded a reduction in violence from the insurgent camp in exchange for a
drawdown of U.S. troops in Afghanistan. The Taliban also agreed to renounce
al-Qaeda and prevent al-Qaeda and other groups from using Afghanistan as a base
for terrorism against the United States. However, a May 2021 report to the U.N.
Security Council by an Afghanistan monitoring team concluded the “Taliban’s
messaging remains uncompromising, and it shows no sign of reducing the level of
violence in Afghanistan to facilitate peace negotiations….” The monitoring team
also reported continuing ties between the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

 

To read CEP’s Taliban resource, please click here
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