On July 8, 2025, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban leader, and Abdul Hakim Haqqani, their Chief Justice. The warrants accuse them of gender-based persecution in Afghanistan, which constitutes a crime against humanity.
This ruling obligates all States Parties to the Rome Statute to cooperate in detaining these individuals. Member states can act on these warrants whenever Akhundzada and Haqqani travel to their territories.
While bringing these individuals to justice may take years, this move by the ICC is a significant step toward holding perpetrators ccountable.This comes at a time when Afghan women face severe repression, systematically denied their human rights and freedoms, including the right to education, work, and free movement.
The ICC decision arrives as the governments of Iran and Pakistan are forcibly and discriminatorily expelling Afghan refugees, especially women and children, back to Afghanistan. There, individuals accused of crimes against humanity currently hold power, and returnees face a serious risk of suppression, discrimination and harassment. The forcible, organized, mass expulsion of refugees from these countries to Afghanistan, while women and girls are denied their fundamental human rights and freedoms, violates all basic principles of international law.
The issuance of these arrest warrants for the Taliban leader and Chief Justice, on charges of gender-based persecution, provides conclusive proof against any attempts to recognize or legitimize this group. Recognizing the Taliban would not only impede justice but also create an environment that perpetuates and supports widespread human rights violations.
Rawadari welcomes the International Criminal Court’s decision as an effective measure to ensure justice and prevent the recurrence of atrocities in Afghanistan. We also emphasize the critical need to address all cases involving international crimes in the country and the various other alleged perpetrators including Islamic State of Khorasan Province forces, former Afghan security forces, and United States security forces . Since Afghanistan joined the Rome Statute in 2003, numerous widespread human rights violations have occurred, falling within the court’s judicial jurisdiction.
Therefore, we hope the ICC Prosecutor’s investigations will expand to cover other crimes committed in Afghanistan, ensuring all victims can access justice. We also stress that achieving effective justice and holding perpetrators and those responsible for crimes in Afghanistan accountable requires the simultaneous implementation of all international judicial mechanisms, including holding Afghanistan accountable through the International Court of Justice, universal jurisdiction, and other relevant UN mechanisms.
Over the past four years, Rawadari, as part of the broader human rights movement of Afghanistan, has actively monitored and documented human rights violations in Afghanistan. These efforts primarily focused on gathering information and evidence related to serious human rights abuses. We will continue our persistent efforts in this regard and advocate for and support international initiatives to hold human rights violators accountable. We will use secure and reliable methods to raise public awareness about international justice mechanisms and to improve understanding of legal processes among the Afghan public.
