Taliban installs facial recognition system with 90,000 cameras in Kabul: Allegations of tracking women

The Taliban administration has established a vast surveillance network in the Afghan capital, Kabul, consisting of 90,000 cameras. The system has the capacity to monitor many details, from vehicle license plates to facial expressions. While Taliban officials argue that this network is used to combat crime, human rights organizations have suggested that the freedoms of women, in particular, could be further restricted. According to the allegations, the Taliban uses the system to identify women who are 'not dressed according to moral codes'.

Following the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban seized control of the country. At that time, there were only 850 security cameras in Kabul. Since 2021, the Taliban has increased the number of cameras in the city to 90,000. The new system, along with facial recognition, can categorize individuals based on their age, gender, and physical characteristics.

BBC gained access to the Taliban's control center and filmed the operation of the system. In the center, the daily lives of six million people in Kabul are monitored via dozens of screens. According to allegations in the report, the Taliban tracks women through the camera system. Human rights organizations have claimed that the Taliban uses these images to identify women who do not dress according to the rules they have imposed.

ALLEGATIONS THAT THE MORALITY POLICE MONITOR THE FOOTAGE

Amnesty International warned that the surveillance network could be used by the Taliban to further restrict women's rights in public spaces. The organization stated that the system could help the Taliban continue its 'brutal policies'.

Officials claimed that only police forces have access to the cameras and that the footage is not reviewed by the 'morality police'.

Taliban police spokesperson Khalid Zadran stated regarding the camera system, 'We are monitoring the entire city of Kabul from here.' Officials noted that when suspicious activities are detected, local police are informed immediately.

Over the last three years, the Taliban has taken a series of decisions that particularly restrict women's rights to education and work. This situation has drawn the reaction of the international community, and no country has officially recognized the Taliban government. Political experts evaluated the surveillance network as part of the Taliban's efforts to strengthen its internal control mechanisms.