The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, issued arrest warrants for two senior Taliban leaders, including Supreme Spiritual Leader Haibatullah Akhundzada and Chief Justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani.
The International Criminal Court reports this.
ICC issues arrest warrants for Taliban leaders for crimes against women
They are accused of crimes against humanity, in particular the persecution of women, girls and people who do not conform to the Taliban's gender policy.
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The court said there were reasonable grounds to believe that Akhundzada and Haqqani were involved in gender-based persecution, including systematically restricting women’s rights to education, freedom of movement, expression, opinion, conscience and religion, committed in Afghanistan since the Taliban came to power on August 15, 2021, and continuing until at least January 20, 2025.
Also targeted were people the Taliban perceived as allies of women and girls, who were seen as political opponents.
The ICC Chamber has preliminarily found that the Taliban have pursued a state policy that has resulted in serious human rights violations against the civilian population, including killings, torture, rape, imprisonment and enforced disappearances.
Although the warrants remain secret, the court decided to disclose their existence in the interests of justice – to prevent further crimes and to raise international awareness.
