The International Criminal Court (ICC) has intensified legal pressure on Afghanistan’s Taliban leadership by unsealing previously issued arrest warrants for four senior officials accused of responsibility for alleged crimes against humanity.
The warrants target Taliban Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, Chief Justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani, Minister of Education Habibullah Agha and Minister of Higher Education Nida Mohammad Nadim.
ICC judges on Monday made public warrants that had previously been issued but kept under seal. The existence of warrants for Hibatullah Akhundzada and Abdul Hakim Haqqani was first announced in July 2025, while the two additional suspects, Habibullah Agha and Nida Mohammad Nadim, were not previously named publicly.
The four warrants were issued between July and September 2025. The warrants for Akhundzada and Haqqani were issued on July 8, 2025, while those for Agha and Nadim were issued on September 9, 2025.
According to the ICC, there are reasonable grounds to believe that all four men are criminally responsible for ordering, inducing or soliciting persecution, which is classified as a crime against humanity under Article 7(1)(h) of the Rome Statute, the court’s founding treaty.
Women, girls allegedly targeted under Taliban policies
The ICC said the alleged persecution was carried out on gender grounds against girls, women and others who did not conform to the Taliban government’s policies concerning gender, gender identity or expression.
The court also said persecution was allegedly carried out on political grounds against people perceived as “allies of girls and women” or as opponents of Taliban policies.
According to the court, the alleged crimes took place in Afghanistan from August 15, 2021, when the Taliban seized power, until at least January 20, 2025.
Judges said the Taliban had established policies that resulted in serious violations of fundamental rights and freedoms, including acts linked to murder, imprisonment, torture, rape and enforced disappearance.
Education and basic freedoms restricted
The ICC said women and girls were specifically targeted because of their gender, even though some Taliban restrictions applied more broadly to the civilian population.
Through decrees and edicts, women and girls were severely deprived of fundamental rights, including access to education, privacy and family life. The court also cited restrictions on freedom of movement, freedom of expression, thought, conscience and religion.
The alleged persecution was not limited to women and girls. The ICC said other Afghans were also targeted when their expressions of sexuality or gender identity were considered incompatible with Taliban policy.
People perceived as opposing the Taliban’s policies were allegedly targeted as political opponents. The court said this could include individuals who opposed the policies passively or simply failed to take action, including people described as allies of women and girls.
Systemic and institutionalised harm
In the warrants, ICC judges said the Rome Statute’s definition of gender goes beyond a purely biological understanding of sex, reflecting developments in international law.
The judges said gender-based persecution must also take into account socially constructed roles, behaviours, expectations and hierarchies traditionally associated with people because of their sex.
The court stressed that persecution can involve more than direct physical violence. It can also encompass systemic and institutionalised harm, including the imposition of discriminatory social norms.
Warrants initially kept under seal
ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan applied for the first two warrants on January 23, 2025. Judges subsequently issued the warrants against Akhundzada and Haqqani on July 8, 2025, initially keeping them under seal to protect victims and witnesses and safeguard the proceedings.
Although the warrants were sealed, the court disclosed at the time that they existed. The warrants against Agha and Nadim were later issued on September 9, 2025.
The prosecutor had said at the time that further applications for arrest warrants against other senior Taliban members would follow.
No Taliban leader arrested
The ICC said the decision to unseal and publicly disclose the warrants is intended to help prevent further crimes and encourage international cooperation.
None of the four Taliban leaders named in the warrants has been arrested so far. The public disclosure increases international legal pressure on the Taliban leadership over its treatment of women, girls and those perceived to oppose its policies.
