In early May, as US and Nato forces began their final withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Taliban stepped up their military offensive against Afghan national security forces.
But they also did something less common in the group's history of conflict in the country - they launched a comprehensive social media campaign to go with it.
A network of social media accounts highlighted the alleged failures of the Kabul government while lauding the Taliban's achievements.
Tweets boasted about the group's recent victories - sometimes prematurely - and pushed several hashtags, including #kabulregimecrimes (attached to tweets accusing the Afghan government of war crimes); #westandwithTaliban (an attempt to drive grassroots support) and #ﻧَﺼْﺮٌ_ﻣٌِﻦَ_اللهِ_ﻭَﻓَﺘْﺢٌ_ﻗَﺮِﻳﺐٌ (help from God and victory is near). The first of the hashtags at least trended in Afghanistan.
In response, Afghanistan's then-Vice President Amrullah Saleh warned his forces and the public not to fall for false claims of Taliban victories on social media, and called on people to avoid sharing details of military operations that could compromise security.
The coordination suggested the Taliban had moved on from the staunch opposition to modern information technology and media once associated with them, and built a social media apparatus to amplify their message.
When the Taliban first came to power in Afghanistan in 1996, they banned the internet and confiscated or destroyed television sets, cameras, and video tapes....
Read Full Story: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-58466939
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