The Taliban, already on Twitter at @alemarahweb, is now posting tweets in English, mainly detailed strikes against allied troops.
The Taliban’s Twitter profile already has more than 2,500 followers and this figure is rapidly growing, with more than 15,00 people adding the page in the past week alone.
Previously the Taliban’s tweets have been written in Pashtu, a regional dialect of Afghanistan. However on May 11, the group posted its first message in English.
Most of the Taliban’s tweets include links to the Taliban’s official website, on which updates relating to attacks against allied forces are published.
Here’s what the Talban has tweeted today.
@alemarahweb: “8 local minions killed, 7 wounded in Kunduz province: KUNDUZ, May 13 – At least 4 puppets of hireling ANA were …”
@alemarahweb: “US invaders spy plane shot down in Wardag: WARDAG, May 13 – Mujahideen of the Islamic Emirate shot down a pilot…”
@alemarahweb: “13 enemy personal killed as Afghan police officer opens fire, several wounded: HELMAND…”
The Taliban’s account follows 12 other Twitter feeds, including @AfghanHeroesUK, which represents a charity for British troops, @AfghanAction, an charity which teachers carpet weaving in Afghanistan, and @Afghantim, a member of the US Air Force who hasn’t tweeted since November.
The Taliban is embracing social media as part of its technology-driven propaganda campaign. The group already spreads information via email and text messages.
Taliban songs and videos are regularly shared through smartphones.
Bartnett Rubin, Senior Fellow at NYU’s Center for International Cooperation, told The New York Daily News he is not surprised the Taliban is now tweeting in English.
“Their website is in Pashto, Persian, Urdu, Arabic, and English,” he said.
“They have been trying to reach an international audience for quite some time.”
Followers of the Taliban on Twitter include @drhamza who described himself as “medical student. Bookworm, geek, interested in oncology, research, technology, cooking, photography, poetry and Arabic literature.web developer. lives in Abha.”
Also following the feed is @karchaouiolfa who claims to be “searching for Freedom, Justice, Human Rights & love.”
The Taliban has historically shunned all forms of electronic communications, believing the internet was “unholy”.
During their time in power the group banned Afghan citizens from using the internet.