"In consultation with experts, we are continuously
assessing the situation in Afghanistan. We are taking temporary actions to
secure relevant accounts, as information continues to come in," a Google
spokesperson said in a statement obtained by The Post.
It was not immediately clear how many accounts were affected
by the tech giant’s action, which was first reported by Reuters.
The swiftness of the Afghan government’s fall at the hands
of the Taliban last month has raised fears that the Islamic fundamentalists
will take advantage of access to nearly two decades of official files to
identify and take revenge on those who worked with and for the Kabul
authorities, as well as other Western-backed institutions.
One former Afghan government employee told Reuters that the
Taliban had asked him to preserve data held on servers belonging to the
ministry he used to work for.
"If I do so, then they will get access to the data and
official communications of the previous ministry leadership," said the
man, who added that he did not comply and is now in hiding.
According to Reuters, approximately two dozen Afghan
government departments used Google to handle official email correspondence —
including the ministries of finance and industry, as well as the office of
presidential protocol. Other agencies, including the ministry of foreign
affairs and the presidential office itself, used Microsoft’s email software,
the report said.
Microsoft did not immediately respond to a question from The
Post about what actions, if any, the company was taking to keep that data out
of Taliban hands.
Days after the Taliban entered Kabul on Aug. 15,
Google-owned YouTube said it would "terminate" any account it
believes to be operated by the extremist group. By contrast, Twitter said itwould allow Taliban accounts to remain on the service while
"proactively" enforcing its rules against "glorification of
violence, platform manipulation and spam."
Meanwhile, The Associated Press reported Friday that Western
Union — which halted service after the militants entered Kabul — will resume
transfers, which may help Afghans to receive cash from relatives living abroad.
Most of Afghanistan’s foreign reserves, however, are held abroad and frozen
while Western nations consider how to engage with the Taliban, putting pressure
on the local currency.
There was no immediate comment from Western Union to the AP
on the resumption of service.
The Taliban has sought to show a moderate face to the
watching world as it consolidates control of Afghanistan, but their
conciliatory statements have been belied by reports this week that the group’s
members were carrying out "house-to-house executions" in Kabul and
elsewhere in the country.
Last month, United Nations human rights chief Michelle
Bachelet warned of "summary executions" and strict restrictions on
women in areas under Taliban control, while the family of an Afghan folk singer
reported that their relative had been executed by the Taliban days after it
declared "music is forbidden in Islam."