Taliban Charges Show US Dilemma, Double Standards in Opposing International Criminal Court
Abstract
On Thursday, Jan. 23., 2025, International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan announced his Office is seeking arrest warrants for the Supreme Leader of the Taliban, Haibatullah Akhundzada, and the Chief Justice of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Abdul Hakim Haqqani, for the crime against humanity of gender persecution (Rome Statute, Art. 7(1)(h)). The charges are unsurprising given what is widely known about the persecution of women and girls in Afghanistan. Since the Taliban returned to power, women and girls have been banned from both secondary school and higher education, and have been progressively removed from all aspects of public life. Under so-called morality laws, the Taliban has banned women from showing their faces, or even using their voices in public. LGBTQI populations have also been targeted. For those suffering under Taliban rule, the ICC Prosecutor’s announcement is at least one sign of an international actor remaining engaged with their plight. The charges do, however, come at an awkward time for U.S. senators preparing to vote on the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act (ICCA) passed recently in the House of Representatives.
Source Publication
Just Security
Repository Citation
Rebecca Hamilton,
Taliban Charges Show US Dilemma, Double Standards in Opposing International Criminal Court,
Just Security
(2025).
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/pub_disc_media/614