Karim Khan, the ICC Chief Prosecutor, has announced plans to request arrest warrants for Taliban leaders, citing reasonable grounds for crimes against humanity targeting Afghan women and girls. Specifically, he highlighted the roles of Haibatullah Akhundzada and Abdul Hakim Haqqani in endorsing and perpetuating systemic persecution based on gender. This move underlines the ICC's commitment to justice regarding serious human rights violations and marks a significant moment in its investigation that began in 2007, which also considered alleged war crimes by US forces. The Taliban's assertions of Islamic law cannot excuse such human rights violations.
They are criminally responsible for persecuting Afghan girls and women and persons whom the Taliban perceived as allies of girls and women, the statement said.
Khan said that his office was demonstrating its commitment to pursuing accountability for gender-based crimes and that the Taliban's interpretation of Islamic sharia law could not be a justification for human rights abuses or crimes.
Afghan women and girls as well as the LGBTQI+ community are facing an unprecedented, unconscionable and ongoing persecution by the Taliban.
This is the first time ICC prosecutors have publicly sought warrants in their investigation into potential war crimes in Afghanistan, which dates back to 2007.
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