The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) said on Thursday that he had filed arrest warrants for Taliban leaders in Afghanistan, including supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada.
The charges are crimes against humanity for widespread discrimination against women and girls.
Why were the warrants requested?
Prosecutor Karim Khan said there were reasonable grounds to suspect that Akhundzada and Chief Justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani had “criminal responsibility for the crime against humanity of gender-based persecution”.
Khan said Afghan women and girls, as well as the LGBTQ+ community, faced “unprecedented, unconscionable and ongoing persecution by the Taliban.”
“Our action signals that the status quo for women and girls in Afghanistan is not acceptable,” Khan added.
Taliban authorities have promised lighter rule than their first stint in power from 1996 to 2001 after returning to power in August 2021.
However, Akhundzada quickly filed edicts forcing women out of public life in accordance with their interpretation of Islamic law.
The restrictions on women and girls have been labeled “gender apartheid” by the United Nations.
Additional warrant requests likely
Khan warned that he would soon seek requests for warrants against other Taliban officials.
He also noted that other crimes against humanity were being committed as well as persecution.
“Perceived resistance or opposition to the Taliban was, and is, brutally suppressed through the commission of crimes including murder, imprisonment, torture, rape and other forms of sexual violence, enforced disappearance and other inhumane acts,” he said.
Judges at the Hague-based court will now have to decide Khan’s request before deciding whether to issue a warrant in a process that could last weeks or even months.
RC / NM (AFP, Reuters)
