Amnesty urges International Criminal Court to probe war crimes in Afghanistan

In the statement, Amnesty International stated, "The International Criminal Court (ICC) must prioritize and accelerate the delivery of justice for victims of crimes committed by the Taliban, as well as by other actors in Afghanistan before the 2021 takeover", Afghanistan-based TOLO News reported.

Zaman Sultani, South Asia researcher of Amnesty International, called on the International Criminal Court to prioritise the issue of dealing with war crimes in Afghanistan.

In the statement, Sultani said, "We demand that the International Criminal Court should prioritize the issue of dealing with war crimes in Afghanistan and provide information regarding the investigation that they started a year ago, where this investigation has reached."

The Taliban also urged the International Criminal Court to conduct a probe into the war crimes of other nations in Afghanistan, TOLO News reported.

Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said, "The crimes committed by the occupying countries in Afghanistan are the responsibility of the powerful countries. This international organization cannot hold them accountable, so we have no hope from this organization, but if it is seen that they are neutral, we will speak about it."

Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch said women in Afghanistan still face arrests, threats and suppression, TOLO News reported. The international NGO that conducts research and advocacy on human rights, raised concern about the current situation of activist women in Afghanistan.

A report published by the NGO pointed to the continued detention of female protesters, including Julia Parsi, Manijeh Sediqi, Neda Parwani, and Parisa Azada.

"These are four women's rights activists arbitrarily detained by the Taliban right now. Remember their names. But please also remember that there are many more in custody who have not been named," the report stated.

"You haven't heard of most of the detained women. Families are terrified into concealing their arrests, hoping silence might buy their release or reduce abuses in custody," it added.

The Taliban, however, said that some women have been arrested to prevent the implementation of foreign programmes and maintain public security.

"Seizure does not mean that we silence someone's voice or that someone is oppressed; It is for the sake of maintaining public security and preventing external conspiracies from happening in Afghanistan," Mujahid added, according to TOLO News.

Some women's rights activists called for the release of the protesting women.

Hwaida Hadis, a women's rights activist, said, "The goal of women's rights activists and those who took to the streets was to be able to hear the voices of Afghan women for the world."

Sonam Latif, another women's rights activist, said, "The women who were arrested did not have any anti-government and security activities, they only wanted Afghan women and girls to study," said Sonam Latif, another women's rights activist." (ANI)