A Nangarhar radio station affiliated to the Islamic State (IS) is continuing to broadcast daily calls for violence despite the Afghan government\u2019s insistence that it is trying to close it down.<\/p>\n
The Khelafat Ghag station has been operating for the last three years, spreading propaganda to encourage residents of the eastern province, particular youngsters, to join IS groups and fight the government and its international allies.<\/p>\n
\u201cBand together against Afghanistan\u2019s non-Islamic state where the American stooges work,\u201d one recent broadcast declared. \u201cKill these stooges first, and then begin with the foreign invaders until they are defeated and leave the holy soil of Khurasan [Afghanistan] dishonourably.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI can say with confidence that if a young person was to listen to Khelafat Ghag Radio for three days in a row, they would at least start showing sympathy to IS, if not join the group,\u201d said Jalalabad city resident Fahimullah. He said that he had seen young men listening to the radio station on the streets of Jalalabad and had even heard it broadcast in some shops.<\/p>\n
Khan Wali, who lives in Nangarhar\u2019s Sraroad district, said he was very concerned about his own children and their vulnerability to extremist propaganda.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am worried that my sons might listen to these radio broadcasts because some of the young boys from our village have joined IS after listening to its programmes,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe propaganda distributed by IS is very strong,\u201d agreed Sayed Qayoom, a resident of Achin district, who said that radio broadcasts had recently been stepped up, concentrating on fake stories and narratives to incite young men to action.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey focus on topics that stimulate young people\u2019s religious feelings.\u201d<\/p>\n
Radio is a vital means of outreach in Afghanistan due to low rates of literacy, and civil society activists in Nangarhar say that it is imperative that the radio be put out of action as soon as possible.<\/p>\n
Local activist Zamir Ashna said that concerns had been raised from the day the radio started broadcasting.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have discussed the issue several times with the authorities, but the question remains why they have neglected to take action,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n
Political analyst Khalid Ahmadzia said that he also did not understand why the Afghan government and its American allies, despite having access to advanced technology, had not been able to simply identify the radio station\u2019s location and destroy it.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is very surprising,\u201d he continued. \u201cIf someone wants to listen to this radio inside the US military base in Jalabad, there is coverage there, but the Afghan government and international forces have remained silent on this issue.\u201d<\/p>\n
Azam Khan, a radio technician, argued that it was straightforward to identify the location of a station.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is a device called a frequency finder that is used to find the frequency and broadcasting signals of a radio, and through this its location can be also identified. If the Afghan government does not have such a device, the American must have one,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
A tribal elder from Nangarhar\u2019s Behsod district, who asked to remain anonymous, said that the output of Khelafat Ghag Radio had had a huge influence on those young men from his area who had joined IS.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere must be some kind of strong support behind this radio,\u201d he continued. \u201cThe Taleban, with all their forces, have not yet been able to launch their own radio station, or if they have their broadcasts must not be that strong as no one has heard their programmes. So how come the IS radio station has such a reach?\u201d<\/p>\n
Government officials appear to disagree on just who is responsible for dealing with the issue.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe do not have the tools or devices by which we can stop these radio broadcasts, and there is nothing we can do,\u201d said Abdulrazaq Saqib, director of the provincial department of information technology. \u201cIt\u2019s the responsibility of the ministry of defence to destroy the radio station.\u201d<\/p>\n
But military officials said that it was no easy matter to even work out where the broadcasts were coming from. Sherin Aqa, media officer of the 201 Silab corps stationed in the east of Afghanistan, said that that the international forces had previously bombed the station, only for IS to resume broadcasting.<\/p>\n
\u201cIS changes the location of their radio,\u201d he explained. \u201cIt is a mobile radio station that operates from different areas. So it\u2019s a bit difficult to identify its location.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Afghan army and air forces were once again searching for the station, he continued.<\/p>\n
Nangarhar officials hope the Kabul government will now step in, noting that they raised the issue with representatives of the president and other senior bodies in a meeting on July 1.<\/p>\n
Attaullah Khogyani, spokesman to the Nangarhar governor, said, \u201cWe shared the issue with the capital so that a solution can be discussed at a higher level and this radio station be destroyed for good.\u201d<\/p>\n
Zabihullah Zmari, the secretary of Nangarhar\u2019s provincial council, said that he was still baffled by the lack of action over the station.<\/p>\n
He said that previously, IS had used the radio station to warn the governor\u2019s office about impending attacks on schools in Jalalabad city. In response, officials closed the closed the schools instead of targeting the radio, he claimed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe government is either incapable and negligent, or else so badly managed that it can\u2019t stop this radio,\u201d Zmari said. \u201cI think we need to investigate just why the government has been so careless about this dangerous propaganda machine.\u201d<\/p>\n