In response to the Taliban government’s persecution of women and girls in Afghanistan, the top prosecutor at the International Criminal Court (ICC) has announced that he will request arrest warrants for key Taliban officials.
According to Karim Khan, there were good reasons to believe that Chief Justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani and Supreme Leader Haibatullah Akhundzada were criminally responsible for crimes against humanity based on gender.
Now, ICC judges will determine if an arrest warrant should be issued.
When national authorities are unable or unwilling to prosecute, the ICC steps in to look into and bring those guilty for crimes against humanity, war crimes, and genocide to justice.
According to Mr. Khan’s statement, the two men were “criminally responsible for persecuting Afghan women and girls, as well as persons whom the Taliban perceived as not innocent.”
