In the past 24 hours, the media outlet “Afghanistan International” has published 18 news items, all of which support Pakistan’s stance and attempt to justify the Pakistani army’s aggression against the Afghan people.
In a news report, this propaganda outlet wrote, “Pakistani media reported that the country’s security forces killed 88 ‘terrorists’ in the past two days.” Afghanistan International published this news as a Pakistani official statement without questioning whether the war is ongoing on Afghan soil and whether the deceased are civilians.
In another news item, the Television reflected the strong statements of the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs, writing, “The Pakistani military spokesman condemned the actions of the Taliban and expressed deep concern about attacks against the country’s territory.” This media outlet repeats Pakistani criticism against the Afghan government but says nothing about Pakistan’s aggression and bombing of Afghanistan.
In another report, Afghanistan International writes, “The fighting between Pakistan and the Taliban has raised the question of whether this conflict is between Pakistan and Afghanistan or only with the Taliban?” International has obscured the nature of the war with this phrase and explicitly supported Pakistan’s propaganda stance.
International wrote in an article titled “Islamabad wants to resolve the conflict with the Taliban thru talks and negotiations,” quoting the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This propaganda outlet gives the impression in this article that Pakistan is pro-peace and the Afghan government is pro-war.
In another news report, the media outlet stated, “The spokesperson for the Pakistani army made harsh criticisms regarding the behavior of Afghan forces in the war and their treatment of the bodies of the deceased soldiers.” Afghanistan International published this sentence in an emotional manner, but said nothing about the bodies of Afghan children and women who were martyred in Pakistani army bombings.
International also wrote in another published news report, “Sources say that Shehbaz Sharif held an emergency meeting on Friday with three provincial ministers, senior military officials, and the cabinet.” This news was presented as if Pakistan were in a state of defense, not aggression.
Afghanistan International also quotes a person named “Naem Pooyesh” as saying, “The Taliban are pursuing an anti-Pakistan policy and a tactic of friendship with India.” The publication of these statements by this media outlet is part of Pakistan’s propaganda war, which is trying to portray Afghans as a proxy force for India.
Elsewhere, a person named “Hassan Ali Adalat” is quoted as saying, “The Taliban’s actions are based on hatred and discrimination against the Hazaras.” This biased media outlet distorts the original nature of the war and raises the issue of ethnic sentiments instead of Pakistani aggression.
Afghanistan International writes elsewhere, “ISIS-K has reacted to Maulavi Amir Khan Muttaqi’s visit to India, stating that the Taliban have joined the front of the infidels.” International has disseminated the same Pakistani propaganda narrative here, which aims to distance and weaken the Afghan government from Indian and Western support and relations.
In another news item, the media outlet quoted Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif as saying, “In addition to the crisis from the Taliban, there is also the possibility of an attack from India, and Pakistan is fully prepared to deal with both sides.” Afghanistan International published these statements without questioning why Pakistan justifies its bombing and aggression against Afghanistan by mentioning the name of a third country.
In another report, Afghanistan International published a pro-Pakistan view stating, “The Taliban should not provide Pakistan with a pretext to attack and should not cause the deaths of Afghans.” With this report, the media outlet once again attempted to blame the victim.
Sources told Afghanistan International that Pakistan bombed Kabul twice in a week, killing and injuring dozens. This is the text of the report by Afghanistan International; however, in the headline, they mentioned “clashes” between the two sides to justify the military regime’s blatant aggression.
In another obvious lie, the midia outlet reports, “Two officials from opposing Taliban fronts were eliminated in Kunduz.” By publishing such reports, International has attempted to undermine the psychological stability of the people during the war.
In another report, Afghanistan International wrote, “Shehbaz Sharif accused the Taliban of attacking Pakistan at India’s behest, and these attacks occurred while the Taliban’s foreign minister was in India.” This sentence is a direct repetition of the propaganda of Pakistan’s intelligence agencies, which Afghanistan International may be reporting at their behest.
The media outlets also wrote, “Due to the isolation and weakness of the Taliban, the four-day war with Pakistan ended with a 48-hour ceasefire.” This news report attempted to portray Afghanistan as weak, despite the fact that Pakistan suffered the most casualties and requested the ceasefire.
Afghanistan International raised another question: “Will the Taliban become a proxy force for India or not?” This question is the same propaganda scheme that Pakistan disseminates to justify its attacks.
International, in another news item, stated, “Although the war has stopped thru a temporary ceasefire, people are concerned that the fighting may resume and Afghan cities may once again face the risk of Pakistani bombing.” Here, they have once again tried to make the people of Afghanistan anxious, frighten them about the war, and portray Pakistan as powerful over Afghanistan.
In general, we can say that the project media outlet called Afghanistan International, which writes Afghanistan with its name but appears to be part of Pakistan’s propaganda machine in terms of content.
Instead of becoming the voice of the Afghan people, this media outlet became the voice of Islamabad’s intelligence agency, and it could be said that it is not “Afghanistan International” but “Pakistan International.”