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The Citizen
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Citizen
UN calls for halt to Afghan deportations amid abuse fears
More than 1.9 million Afghans have been deported this year, with the UN warning of systemic abuse under Taliban rule. A Taliban security personnel stands over an armoured tank bearing a Taliban flag, as he keeps guard during a religious procession by Afghan Shiite Muslims celebrating Ashura, on the tenth day of the Islamic holy month of Muharram, in Kabul on July 6, 2025. Picture: Wakil Kohsar / AFP The United Nations insisted no one should be sent back to Afghanistan, after Germany on Friday deported 81 Afghans convicted of crimes to their Taliban-controlled homeland. The UN rights office warned that surging numbers of Afghans being forced to return to their conflict- and crisis-torn country from elsewhere in the region especially but also further afield was creating 'a multi-layered human-rights crisis'. 'UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk calls for an immediate halt to the forcible return of all Afghan refugees and asylum-seekers, particularly those at risk of persecution, arbitrary detention or torture upon their return,' spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva. She stressed that sending people, even those convicted of crimes, back to a country where they risk facing serious abuses 'violates the core international law principle of non-refoulement'. Germany defends deportations The comments came after Berlin said it had deported 81 Afghan men convicted of crimes in Germany, the second such operation. Germany, like most countries, stopped deportations to Afghanistan and closed its embassy in Kabul following the Taliban's return to power in 2021. ALSO READ: Taliban enforces smartphone ban in Afghan schools But it resumed expulsions last year, when the previous government of Social Democrat chancellor Olaf Scholz expelled 28 Afghan convicts. Iran and Pakistan ramp up mass deportations Friday's deportations come as Afghanistan is already reeling from the returns of more than 1.9 million people since the beginning of the year from Iran and Pakistan. Iran has deported some 500,000 people in the past month alone, Shamdasani said. The UN warned last week that as many as three million could arrive by the end of the year. 'Structural and systemic discrimination' 'People returning to Afghanistan, whether by compulsion or of their own volition, find a country facing an acute humanitarian and human-rights crisis,' Shamdasani said. 'They also face structural and systemic discrimination, gender persecution, issues related to ethnicity, obstacles to full reintegration into society, and a dearth of work and livelihoods as a result of a struggling economy.' NOW READ: Lawyers for Human Rights slam Proteas for playing Afghanistan
Newsweek
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
Taliban Respond to War Crimes Warrants for Persecuting Women
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Afghanistan's Taliban have dismissed International Criminal Court warrants for their leader and another top official over the persecution of women, nearly four years after the Islamists' return to power ended two decades of U.S-backed reform. Newsweek contacted the International Criminal Court for comment. Why It Matters The treatment of women under Taliban rule in Afghanistan has been a key factor behind their government's isolation by Western countries since defeating a U.S.-backed government in August 2021, as U.S.-led foreign forces were withdrawing. Afghan burqa-clad women walk along a road in the Nawabad area of the Dehdadi district in Balkh Province on June 30, 2025. Afghan burqa-clad women walk along a road in the Nawabad area of the Dehdadi district in Balkh Province on June 30, 2025. Photo by ATIF ARYAN/AFP via Getty Images Under Taliban rules, Afghan women are largely barred from work and education beyond primary school. Women can not venture outdoors without a male relative and are barred from parks and gyms. The numerous beauty parlours that sprang up after U.S.-led forces drove the Taliban from power in 2001 in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, have all been closed. Russia last week became the first country to recognize the Taliban government, saying it hoped to develop ties and would offer Afghanistan security cooperation and anti-narcotics support. What to Know The ICC issued warrants for the supreme spiritual leader of the Taliban, Haibatullah Akhundzada, and top justice official Abdul Hakim Haqqani saying there were "reasonable grounds" to suspect them of committing "the crime against humanity of persecution... on gender grounds". The Taliban said in a statement they did not recognize the ICC and the warrants were an insult to Muslims. A Taliban spokesman said his leaders had established unparalleled justice based on Islamic law and it was hypocritical for the ICC to issue such warrants while the world ignored violence in Gaza. A Taliban security personnel stands over an armoured tank bearing a Taliban flag, as he keeps guard during a religious procession by Afghan Shiite Muslims celebrating Ashura, on the tenth day of the Islamic holy... A Taliban security personnel stands over an armoured tank bearing a Taliban flag, as he keeps guard during a religious procession by Afghan Shiite Muslims celebrating Ashura, on the tenth day of the Islamic holy month of Muharram, in Kabul on July 6, 2025. More Photo by WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images What People are Saying International Criminal Court: "While the Taliban have imposed certain rules and prohibitions on the population as a whole, they have specifically targeted girls and women by reason of their gender, depriving them of fundamental rights and freedoms." Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid: "The leadership and officials of the Islamic Emirate have established unparalleled justice in Afghanistan based on the sacred laws of Islamic sharia." Liz Evenson, international justice director at Human Rights Watch: "The international community should fully back the ICC in its critical work in Afghanistan and globally, including through concerted efforts to enforce the court's warrants." What Happens Next The ICC are unlikely to be able to implement the warrants. The warrants could discourage some countries considering establishing ties with the Taliban. But for others, the warrants might not be a major factor as they weigh ties with the Taliban, especially after Russia's recognition of the Kabul government.
Toronto Sun
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Toronto Sun
ICC issues arrest warrants for Taliban leaders over persecution of women and girls
Published Jul 08, 2025 • 3 minute read Armed Taliban security personnel sit atop an armoured vehicle as they keep guard during a religious procession by Afghan Shiite Muslims celebrating Ashura, on the 10th day of the Islamic holy month of Muharram, in Herat on Sunday, July 6, 2025. Photo by MOHSEN KARIMI / AFP / Getty Images THE HAGUE, Netherlands — The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants Tuesday for the Taliban's supreme leader and the head of Afghanistan's Supreme Court on charges of persecuting women and girls since seizing power nearly four years ago. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account The warrants also accuse the leaders of persecuting 'other persons nonconforming with the Taliban's policy on gender, gender identity or expression; and on political grounds against persons perceived as 'allies of girls and women.'' The warrants were issued against Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhunzada and the head of the Supreme Court, Abdul Hakim Haqqani. The court's prosecution office called the decision to issue warrants 'an important vindication and acknowledgment of the rights of Afghan women and girls.' It added that the judges' ruling 'also recognizes the rights and lived experiences of persons whom the Taliban perceived as not conforming with their ideological expectations of gender identity or expression, such as members of the LGBTQI+ community, and persons whom the Taliban perceived as allies of girls and women.' Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Zabihullah Mujahid, the chief spokesman for the Taliban government, rejected the court's authority. He said in a statement that the court's decision reflected 'open hostility and hatred toward the holy religion of Islam and Shariah law,' and is 'an insult to the beliefs of all Muslims.' The warrants came just hours after the United Nations adopted a resolution Monday over U.S. objections that called on the Taliban to reverse their worsening oppression of women and girls and eliminate all terrorist organizations. They are the latest high-profile suspects named in arrest warrants issued by The Hague-based court that also has sought the arrest of other leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Since returning to power in Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban have imposed harsh measures, banning women from public places and girls from attending school beyond the sixth grade. Last week, Russia became the first country to formally recognize the Taliban's government. The court said in a statement that the Taliban have 'severely deprived, through decrees and edicts, girls and women of the rights to education, privacy and family life and the freedoms of movement, expression, thought, conscience and religion.' The court's chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, sought the warrants in January, saying that they recognized that 'Afghan women and girls as well as the LGBTQI+ community are facing an unprecedented, unconscionable and ongoing persecution by the Taliban.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Global advocacy group Human Rights Watch welcomed the decision, and urged the international community to help enforce the court's warrants. 'Senior Taliban leaders are now wanted men for their alleged persecution of women, girls, and gender-nonconforming people,' Liz Evenson, the group's international justice director, said in a statement. ICC judges approved a request in 2022 from the prosecutor to reopen an investigation into Afghanistan. The probe was shelved after Kabul said it could handle the investigation. Khan said he wanted to reopen the inquiry because under the Taliban, there was 'no longer the prospect of genuine and effective domestic investigations' in Afghanistan. Khan's predecessor, Fatou Bensouda, got approval in 2020 to start looking at offences allegedly committed by Afghan government forces, the Taliban, American troops and U.S. foreign intelligence operatives dating back to 2002. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. When Khan reopened the probe, he said he would focus on crimes committed by the Taliban and the Afghan affiliate of the Islamic State group. He said he would 'deprioritize' other aspects of the investigation, such as crimes committed by Americans. The warrants for Taliban leaders were issued while Khan has stepped down temporarily pending the outcome of an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct. Khan has categorically denied accusations that he tried for more than a year to coerce a female aide into a sexual relationship and groped her against her will. — Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed. Canada Toronto Blue Jays Canada Sunshine Girls Crime
