The hague: The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for the Taliban's supreme leader and chief justice, accusing them of persecuting girls and women in Afghanistan. The UN court in The Hague stated there were reasonable grounds to conclude that Supreme Leader Haibatullah Akhundzada and Chief Justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani have engaged in systemic gender-based violence since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021.
According to Ghana News Agency, the two leaders are further accused of persecuting individuals non-conforming with the Taliban's policy on gender and those perceived as allies of girls and women. The statement from the court highlighted that while the Taliban have imposed certain rules and prohibitions on the population as a whole, they have specifically targeted girls and women by reason of their gender, depriving them of fundamental rights and freedoms, which the court classifies as a crime against humanity.
Under the Taliban regime, women have faced severe restrictions, such as being prohibited from accessing education beyond the seventh grade. In December, the Taliban also banned women from training in the medical field, although some schools continue to offer lessons for older girls in defiance of the order. A report released by the UN in June indicated that nearly 80% of all women under 30 years old are excluded from education or work under the Taliban.
ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan requested the arrest warrants in January, citing witness accounts, official decrees, videos, and statements by the Taliban as evidence. However, the Taliban have rejected the allegations, claiming the prosecution is politically motivated and lacks legal basis.
The International Criminal Court does not possess its own police force and relies on the assistance of its signatory states to enforce the arrest warrants. Once the suspects are on their territory, a state is obliged to arrest them and hand them over to the court.
