The Prosecutor of the United Nations International Criminal Court is seeking an arrest warrant for the Taliban leader on charges of persecuting women

Prosecutor of the United Nations International Criminal Court announced Thursday He was seeking arrest warrants against two senior leaders of the movement The ruling Taliban regime in Afghanistan For committing crimes against humanity at the hands of the group Treatment of women and girls.

Prosecutor Karim Khan said that after conducting a comprehensive investigation and reviewing the evidence, his office found “reasonable grounds to believe” that Taliban supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada and the movement’s supreme court chief Abdul Hakim Haqqani bear “criminal responsibility for the crime against humanity of gender-based persecution.” . For reasons”, under the treaty that established the International Criminal Court, known as Rome Statute.

Khan said his office concluded that the two men “are criminally responsible for the persecution of Afghan girls and women, as well as people the Taliban considers to not conform to their ideological expectations regarding gender identity or expression, and people the Taliban considers their allies.” Girls and women.”

The statement said the alleged crimes had been committed “at least” since the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan in August 2021 “to the present day” across the country.

“This ongoing persecution entails severely depriving victims of their fundamental rights, in contravention of international law, including the rights to bodily integrity and autonomy, freedom of movement and expression, education, private and family life, and freedom of assembly.” Khan said.

There was no immediate reaction to Khan’s request from the Taliban leadership.

since Regain control of AfghanistanThe Taliban imposed a long list of harsh laws targeting women and girls. These measures have alienated women from public life and drawn condemnation from much of the international community, including allegations of racial segregation on the basis of gender.

Under the pretext of Islamic law, these measures deprived girls and women of formal education from the age of 12, the right to visit public parks or travel alone, or even to see a doctor unless accompanied by a male companion.

Last month, the Taliban imposed a ban on training women to become midwives and nurses — another devastating blow in a country already suffering from one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world. According to World Bank data, 620 women die for every 100,000 live births in Afghanistan due to pregnancy-related complications.

Akhundzadeh recently ordered covering the windows of homes overlooking spaces used by women, such as kitchens, courtyards, or water wells.

Elizabeth Evenson, director of the International Justice Program in New York

Human Rights Watch said in a statement on Thursday that it hopes the request for ICC arrest warrants against senior Taliban figures will put “the systematic exclusion of women and girls from public life and the targeting of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people back on the radar.” international community.”

Evenson said the Taliban’s gender-based repression has “accelerated with complete impunity” since the summer of 2021, and that “with no justice in sight in Afghanistan, arrest warrant requests provide an essential path to some measure of accountability.”

It also called on the ICC Prosecutor to reconsider his decision to “deprioritize the investigation into violations committed by former Afghan government forces and US personnel” who were stationed in the country for two decades. The investigation was into the actions of American forces Launched by Salaf Khan.

Khan said the request for international arrest warrants highlights the ICC’s commitment to holding those responsible for gender-based crimes accountable, and more arrests and issuance of arrest warrants for other senior Taliban members are expected to follow as the court’s investigation into the situation in Afghanistan continues.

“The ICC judges will now determine whether these requests for arrest warrants constitute reasonable grounds to believe that the individuals named committed the alleged crimes. If the judges issue the arrest warrants, my office will work closely with the Registrar in all efforts to achieve this.” “Arresting individuals,” Khan said, adding, “As in all cases, I ask states parties to fully cooperate with the court and assist it in implementing any judicial order.”

While the International Criminal Court has the power to issue arrest warrants – and did so recently For both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahuthe country’s former defense minister and a senior Hamas leader — has no way to independently implement such memos.

The matter is up to the countries that signed the founding treaty of the court To decide Whether individuals wanted under ICC arrest warrants will be detained when they enter the territory of that State.

The United States is not a signatory to the Rome Statute and is therefore not obligated to detain anyone under an ICC warrant.

Even if the ICC issues arrest warrants for Akhundzada or other Taliban leaders, they are unlikely to attempt to visit any country where they could risk arrest. Almost the entire world has refused to recognize the Taliban as the legitimate government in Afghanistan following its reassertion of control over the country.

Khan himself faces accusations that he tried for more than a year to force his assistant to have a sexual relationship and touch her against her will. He categorically denied the allegations, saying there was “no truth to the allegations of misconduct.” ICC officials said the allegations may have been made as part of an Israeli intelligence smear campaign.