The United Nations (UN) mission in Afghanistan said on Tuesday that the ruling Taliban has arbitrarily detained journalists 256 times since it seized power three years ago and called on the country's authorities to protect the media, Reuters reported.

Journalists in Afghanistan worked “under difficult conditions,” the U.N. mission (UNSAMA) and the U.N. Human Rights Office said in a statement.

“They often face unclear rules on what they can and cannot report, at risk of intimidation and arbitrary detention for alleged criticism,” said Roza Otunbayeva, special representative of the UN secretary-general.

“We urge the de facto authorities to ensure the protection of all journalists and media workers in the performance of their tasks and to fully recognize the importance of women's work in the media,” she added.

 Afghanistan's Foreign Ministry said the number of detained journalists was “exaggerated,” and the detentions were carried out in accordance with the law.

The country's authorities also said the UN report was “far from the reality” and claimed that security forces were working to protect journalists.

The Afghan government, for its part, said that women continue to work in the media “subject to certain conditions related to religious morality,” such as covering their faces and working separately from men.