Contents
The Influence of Taliban Accounts on Social Media
As the new president of Afghanistan flees to the United Arab Emirates to escape the Taliban, questions continue to arise about how the Afghan Taliban are gaining legitimacy via social media. Here is what you need to know about the influence of Taliban accounts on social media. First of all, it is not a new phenomenon. Facebook banned the Taliban for many years and deactivated their accounts after a New York Times investigation. It is important to note that Facebook respects the authority of the international community.
Afghanistan’s new president flees to United Arab Emirates
The UAE has confirmed that Afghanistan’s new President Ashraf Ghani has fled to the country, citing humanitarian grounds. The Afghan president, who stepped down in the face of Taliban attacks last weekend, is now a refugee in the UAE. See the article : How to Save Twitter Gifs. Ghani’s escape came amid withering criticism over the manner in which he fled the country and failed to leave his advisers behind. The Afghan civil government has fallen apart as a result of Ashraf Ghani’s defection.
Ghani’s sudden flight came as a surprise to many, including foreign officials and Afghans. Tajikistan’s government has reportedly denied Ghani permission to land in its country. A video posted on Ghani’s Facebook page said he was forced to leave Afghanistan with just a single set of traditional clothes and sandals. On Twitter, he claimed to be the legitimate caretaker president of Afghanistan.
Ghani has served as president since 2014. However, his government crumbled last year under the Taliban. When they stormed Kabul, they faced little resistance, and quickly took control of the presidential palace. Fearing further bloodshed, Ghani fled to the UAE, where he worked for the UN and the World Bank. He was first elected in 2014, but became increasingly isolated during his seven years in office. He was also cut out of peace talks between the United States and the Taliban, which led to the emergence of an increasingly powerful, anti-Taliban faction.
Afghan Taliban seeks legitimacy on social media
The Taliban’s emergence on the social media has been accompanied by a rise in their public visibility and the use of official accounts. While the Taliban’s official Twitter accounts are not verified by the social media giant, the Afghan government says the group’s recent tweets do not seem to violate Twitter’s rules. This may interest you : Who Has Most Twitter Followers?. The Afghan Taliban’s Twitter accounts also display consistent portrayals of their commitment to women’s rights and human rights. The Taliban’s official Twitter account has received almost 3,000 engagements and has reached over 233,000 people on the platform.
The Afghan Taliban maintain strong ties with their jihadist partner al Qaeda. Al Qaeda fighters from all branches of the group have pledged allegiance to the Islamic Emirates of Afghanistan and took part in several battles during the month of August 2021. As the Islamic State has gained strength in recent months, several nations have relied on the Taliban to keep IS in check. The killing of a senior IS leader in Afghanistan’s capital is a sign that the new rulers are upholding their end of the bargain.
The Taliban’s new tactics include attempting to recast themselves as more moderate and less violent than their predecessors. The group will try to portray itself as kinder than in the past and push back against Western media reports about their repressive regime. The Taliban will also continue to push the idea of building an inclusive government in Kabul and adopting a more conservative interpretation of Sharia law. In order to gain this legitimacy, the Taliban will use social media to reach out to a wider audience.
Influence of taliban accounts on social media
The influence of Taliban accounts on social media is difficult to quantify. In a country where internet access is scarce, only 15% of the population has access to the internet, and those who do often live in urban areas and come from middle-class families. Only about 9% of people in the country are actively using social media. See the article : How Many People Are on Twitter?. Yet there are several ways to assess the influence of these accounts. Read on to learn how the Taliban use social media to spread their message.
Since the start of the summer offensive, the Taliban have taken advantage of social media to further spread their message. They have joined YouTube, launched their own app, and have been publishing regular updates in Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. In addition to promoting their own messages and activities, they use the internet to build a network of friendly bloggers, linking their mission to popular movements. Moreover, some of these accounts have been sanctioned by Twitter, highlighting their inauthentic behavior.
The Taliban have remained undeterred by the restrictions imposed on them by the U.S. and the former Afghan government. Because of this, tech platforms should make it easier for people to remove their accounts. Meanwhile, the tech giants have announced new measures to protect Afghans and limit the influence of their accounts. In the meantime, the influence of taliban accounts on social media should be kept to a minimum.
