Inside the Taliban's surveillance network monitoring millions

The Taliban police force recently showcased its newly established network of 90,000 surveillance cameras, designed to monitor the daily lives of millions of people. Pointing to a screen, Khalid Zadran, a spokesman for the Taliban police chief, stated, "We are monitoring the entire city of Kabul from here." This extensive network marks a significant step in the Taliban's efforts to exert control over the capital.

Taliban authorities claim that such surveillance will help combat crime. However, critics fear that it will be used to suppress dissent and oversee the strict moral codes enforced by the Taliban government. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) was the first international media outlet granted access to inspect the system on the ground, highlighting the international interest and concern surrounding this development.

Inside the control room, police officers sit in rows in front of computers, watching live feeds from thousands of cameras, closely monitoring the lives of Kabul's six million residents. Everything from car license plates to facial expressions is under surveillance. Zadran stated that when they notice crowds in certain neighborhoods and suspect them of being involved in drug use, criminal activity, or suspicious behavior, they quickly contact local police so they can quickly arrive at the scene to investigate.

Under the previous government, Kabul was under the daily threat of attacks by the Taliban and so-called Islamic State militants, and also faced high-profile kidnappings and carjackings. After regaining power in 2021, the Taliban pledged to crack down on crime. The sharp increase in the number of surveillance cameras in the capital marks the Taliban's growing sophistication in law enforcement. According to a spokesman for the ousted security forces, there were only 850 cameras in the capital before the Taliban's return.

However, in the past three years, the Taliban authorities have also taken a series of harsh measures restricting people's rights and freedoms, particularly those of women. The Taliban government has not been formally recognized by any other country. The surveillance system seen by the BBC in Kabul has the option of tracking people through facial recognition. In the corner of one screen, images pop up, with each face classified by age range, gender, and whether they have a beard or mask.

Zadran highlighted a camera located high up, focused on a busy traffic intersection, and stated, "On a clear day, we can zoom in on people several kilometers away." The Taliban even monitors its own staff. At a checkpoint, as soldiers opened the trunk of a car for inspection, operators focused the lens, zooming in to carefully examine what was inside. This level of scrutiny extends to all aspects of life in Kabul.

The Ministry of Interior stated that the cameras "greatly contribute to security, reduce crime rates, and quickly arrest criminals." It added that the introduction of CCTV and motorcycle controls led to a 30% drop in crime rates between 2023 and 2024, but these figures could not be independently verified. However, human rights organizations are concerned about who is being monitored and for how long.

Amnesty International stated that installing cameras under the guise of "national security" sets a precedent for the Taliban to continue implementing its harsh policies that violate the basic rights of the Afghan people—especially women in public places. Laws stipulate that women must not be heard outside the home, although this is not strictly enforced in practice. Girls are banned from receiving secondary and higher education. Women are prohibited from engaging in many forms of employment. Last December, women undergoing training as midwives and nurses told the BBC that they had been ordered not to return to the classroom.

While women can still be seen on the streets of cities such as Kabul, they must wear veils. Fariba*, a young graduate living with her parents in Kabul, has been unable to find work since the Taliban came to power. She told the BBC that people are "very concerned that surveillance cameras may be used to monitor women's hijabs [veils]." The Taliban says that only city police have access to the CCTV system, and that the Taliban's morality police—the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice—do not use it.

But Fariba fears that the cameras will further endanger those who oppose Taliban rule. "Many people, especially former military personnel, human rights advocates, and protesting women, find it difficult to move freely and often live in secret," she said. "People are very concerned that surveillance cameras will also be used to monitor women's hijabs," she said, reiterating her concerns about the potential misuse of the technology.

Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch stated that Afghanistan has no data protection laws to regulate how collected CCTV footage is held and used. Police say the data is only kept for three months, while according to the Ministry of Interior, the cameras do not pose a threat to privacy because they are "operated by specific and professional heads in dedicated and completely confidential rooms." The lack of clear regulations raises serious questions about data security and potential abuse.

The cameras appear to be made in China. The brand name on the control room monitors and sources seen by the BBC was Dahua, a company associated with the Chinese government. Earlier reports stated that the Taliban was in talks with China's Huawei Technologies to purchase cameras, but the company denied this. Taliban officials declined to answer the BBC's questions about where they sourced the equipment, leaving the origin and implications of the technology unclear.

Some of the cost of installing the new network is falling on ordinary Afghans being monitored by the system. In a house in central Kabul, the BBC interviewed Sheila*, who was asked to pay for the installation of some cameras on the street near her home. "They asked each household to pay thousands of Afghanis," she said. In a country where a woman with a job might only earn about 5,000 Afghanis ($68; £54) a month, this is a huge sum.

After years of war, the humanitarian situation in Kabul and throughout Afghanistan remains precarious. The country's economy is in crisis, but international aid funding has largely ceased since the Taliban regained power. According to the United Nations, 30 million people are in need of assistance. "If families refuse to pay [for the cameras], they are threatened with having their water and electricity cut off within three days," Sheila added. "We had to take out a loan to pay for it." "People are starving—what good are these cameras to them?"

The Taliban says that if people do not want to donate, they can file a formal complaint. Taliban police spokesman Khalid Zadran insisted: "Participation is voluntary, and the donations are hundreds, not thousands." Despite these assurances, rights advocates inside and outside Afghanistan remain concerned about how such a powerful surveillance system will be used. The potential for abuse and the impact on civil liberties are significant concerns.

Jaber, a vegetable seller in Kabul, said the cameras represent another way in which Afghans feel powerless. "We are treated like trash, deprived of the opportunity to earn a living, and the authorities think we are worthless," he told the BBC. "There is nothing we can do." This sentiment reflects the deep-seated frustration and despair felt by many Afghans under the current regime.

*Names of women interviewed in this article have been changed for security reasons. Peter Bowes provided supplementary reporting.