ICC prosecutor wants to restart investigation into Afghanistan war crimes
The Hague, Netherlands - The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has asked for urgent authorization to resume investigations into war crimes committed in Afghanistan.
In a Monday statement, Karim Khan said that, after the seizure of power by the Taliban in Afghanistan, he has reached the conclusion that there is "no longer the prospect of genuine and effective domestic investigations" within Afghanistan.
Last year, the ICC allowed an investigation into alleged Afghan war crimes by the Taliban and Islamic State terrorist groups, as well as by Afghan and international forces in the country. The then Afghan government requested that it take over the cases. However, that government was ousted by the Taliban last month.
Khan says if authorization is granted, his office will prioritize crimes allegedly committed by the Taliban and Islamic State, including the recent Islamic State-claimed attack near Kabul's airport, which killed at least 100 civilians.
"The gravity, scale and continuing nature of alleged crimes by the Taliban and the Islamic State, which include allegations of indiscriminate attacks on civilians, targeted extrajudicial executions, persecution of women and girls, crimes against children and other crimes affecting the civilian population at large, demand focus and proper resources from my office, if we are to construct credible cases capable of being proved beyond reasonable doubt in the courtroom," Khan said.
Human rights organizations oppose "selective approach"
Khan also emphasized that he is committed to deploying the appropriate and available resources at his disposal to ensure independent and impartial investigations, adding that "victims and survivors in Afghanistan deserve no less."
Reacting to the statement, the associate Asia director for Human Rights Watch, Patricia Gossman, said that a selective approach to prosecuting crimes will further entrench impunity.
"It seems there is no end to the betrayal of Afghans – now so many victims of torture and other abuses by US and former Afghan government forces have been told there is no justice for you," Gossman stated in a series of tweets.
Based in The Hague, in the Netherlands, the ICC was established in 2002 to prosecute alleged atrocities in countries that are not able to bring perpetrators of war crimes and crimes against humanity to justice.
Cover photo: IMAGO / ANP