Amnesty International has called for the immediate and unconditional release of Mahdi Ansari

The human rights organization, Amnesty International, has demanded the immediate and unconditional release of Mahdi Ansari, a journalist imprisoned by the Taliban.

Today, Tuesday, February 4th, in a letter addressed to Abdulhaq Wasiq, the head of the Taliban Intelligence, the organization called for the immediate and unconditional release of this journalist and declared his continued detention unlawful.

Amnesty International added: “He must be immediately and unconditionally released because he has been detained solely for peacefully exercising his human rights.”

According to Amnesty International, Mahdi Ansari has faced harassment and abuse during his detention, including solitary confinement, which has severely impacted his mental health. He has also been deprived of regular visits with his family.

It is reported that his family was only able to visit him one month after his detention, and the meeting lasted only five minutes.

Mahdi Ansari, a journalist with the Afghan news agency, was arrested near his office in Dasht-e-Barchi on October 5th, and was sentenced to one and a half years in prison on January1, for allegedly spreading propaganda against the Taliban.

Since his arrest, he has been held in the Taliban Intelligence Directorate’s prison (Directorate 40). After the Taliban regained power, they imposed severe restrictions and censorship on the media, dealing harshly with journalists and media outlets that do not comply with these restrictions.