Alphabet Inc’s YouTube said on Tuesday it has a long held policy of not allowing accounts believed to be operated by the Taliban...

Separately, the Financial Times reported that Facebook Inc's WhatsApp messaging service has shut down a complaints helpline for Afghans to contact the Taliban, set up by the group after it took control of Kabul...

A WhatsApp spokesperson declined to comment on the action, but said the service was obligated by U.S. sanctions laws to ban accounts that appear to represent themselves as official accounts of the Taliban.

The complaints number that was an emergency hotline for civilians to report violence, looting or other problems was blocked by Facebook on Tuesday, along with other official Taliban channels, the report said...

YouTube, when asked if it banned the Taliban on Monday, declined to comment. But it said on Tuesday that its prohibition of the group was a long-standing approach...

Asked if it would allow the Taliban to operate official Afghan government Facebook pages or accounts, Facebook pointed to a statement in which it said it respects the authority of the international community in making determinations on recognized governments...