On some websites, you do not need to hide your identity: for example, when you spend time on your social media account or on sites like Vulkan Bet, you use and even share your personal information with others. But doing so can be a mistake in some parts of the world: Afghanistan is a good example. Recently, the most popular social media platforms have announced that they added a feature where Afghan users can hide their identities with one click. So, what was the reason for this? Why do Afghan users need to stay private on social media? We answer these questions below.
A Short History Lesson First
To understand the reason for this, we first need to briefly talk about Afghanistan’s recent history. Soviet Russia invaded Afghanistan in 1979. The USA started to support the local people against this invasion. In this context, the USA was sending weapons to the country via Pakistan and using the radio/TV to invite the local people to resist the Russians. But when this alone was not enough, it began to support radical Islamic movements already present in the region. The idea was to use these radical groups against the Soviets. The USA saw this as a long-term goal and planned to create a “Green Belt” encircling the entire USSR. In this way, it would be possible to break Soviet Russia’s dominance in Asia and enable radical Islamic groups to fight for the USA.
The Taliban was one of these groups. There were dozens of extremist groups like the Taliban in Afghanistan at the time (all called mujahideen), and they were fighting not only against the Soviets but also against each other. It is estimated that 30,000 people died during these wars between 1992 and 1995 alone. However, the difference between the Taliban and other groups was that the Taliban was smarter: they chose not to engage in local conflicts and contacted the Pakistani Intelligence Service for support. Pakistan’s Intelligence Service was controlled by the CIA, and the United States did not hesitate for a moment to support the Taliban, who seemed much more stable than other mujahideen gangs. In this context, the financial support needed for the training of the Taliban was provided by the Gulf countries, primarily Saudi Arabia, while the military needs were met by Pakistan and the USA. Thanks to this support, the Taliban took control of Afghanistan to a large extent in 1995, and Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto even declared that she officially recognized the Taliban. The USA had no objections: a Taliban-controlled Afghanistan was the perfect opportunity for its “Central Asian Oil Line” plans.
And Then 9/11 Happened
The USA announced that the September 11 attacks were a declaration of war and claimed that Osama Bin Laden, Al Qaeda, and the Taliban regime were responsible for this attack. There are many sources who claim that the inclusion of the Taliban in this list was because of its objections to the US oil pipeline plans, but let’s not get carried away. Most of you know the rest of the story: the United States invaded Afghanistan, forced the Taliban back into the mountains, and had a self-established government run the country for nearly 20 years. During this time, the USA naturally received help from the local population: some Afghans worked as translators, some were staff at US bases, and some guided US soldiers in the field. These people number in the tens of thousands.
When the US announced it would withdraw from Afghanistan, the problem was clear: what would happen to these people? The Taliban have long said they will “punish anyone who aids the United States when they return.” In other words, it was known that the day US soldiers left the country, anyone who helped them in any way was in grave danger. Indeed, this is what actually happened: the day the Taliban recaptured Afghanistan, they began hunting anyone they saw as “collaborators”. To do this, they actively used social media: for example, someone who took a photo with a US soldier and uploaded it to his Facebook account was in danger of death.
That’s why social media platforms give Afghans the option to protect their accounts with one click: they’re trying to prevent shared photos, videos, and messages from being seen by the Taliban. Currently, Facebook and LinkedIn offer this option, other platforms are expected to offer a similar feature. These platforms also prohibit the Taliban from having an official account, as they are a terrorist organization.
