Four years have passed since the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan, with the milestone reached on 15 August 2025. As Afghan women and girls face systematic rights violations and a worsening humanitarian crisis, the International Bar Association's Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) underscores the continued need for international condemnation and concrete accountability measures.
Since the United States' planned military withdrawal from Afghanistan - together with its allies - and the swift collapse of the Afghan government resulting in most of the country capitulating to the Taliban by 15 August 2021, the de facto authorities have issued nearly 100 decrees. These have severely curtailed women's and girls' rights including freedom of movement; participation in public affairs; access to education, work and healthcare; and the right to justice.
In response to the ongoing violations, the countries of Australia, Canada, Germany and the Netherlands have signalled intentions to initiate proceedings before the International Court of Justice against Afghanistan for violations of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW); the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants against the Supreme Leader of the Taliban, alongside its Chief Justice; and a coalition of Afghan civil society organisations in exile has launched the People's Tribunal for Women of Afghanistan before the Permanent People's Tribunal .
In 2023, the IBAHRI-led Gender Apartheid Inquiry , called for the recognition of gender apartheid as a crime under international law, with the possibility of codifying it under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and under Article 2 of the Draft articles on Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity .
IBAHRI Director Baroness Helena Kennedy LT KC commented: 'Developing multiple accountability mechanisms and codifying gender apartheid into international law is essential to hold perpetrators of this systematic repression responsible. In 2021, the IBAHRI evacuated over 100 Afghan female judges and lawyers. We continue to emphasise the urgent need for the international community to provide safe refuge to Afghans fleeing repression. The international community's support, including models like automatic refugee status, is critical at this juncture. It is admirable that Denmark and Sweden have adopted automatic refugee status.'
To chronicle past and present human rights abuses in Afghanistan, the IBAHRI has also called for the adoption of an UN-mandated accountability mechanism. Such mechanisms aim to uncover the full scope of violations, which remain unclear due to Taliban restrictions silencing many voices, the travel ban imposed on the UN-appointed Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan Richard Bennett and the targeting of journalists and civil society that has forced many into exile.
IBAHRI Co-Chair Hina Jilani commented: 'Since the Taliban's return, women have endured extreme oppression with impunity. Standing by while Afghan women's rights continue to be restricted impresses upon these women that they have been abandoned. It is important that the international community unites to address the safety of Afghan women and the systematic restrictions and violations through all available legal and diplomatic channels, including establishing accountability mechanisms to document and prosecute these crimes.'
Furthermore, the IBAHRI is gravely concerned by the mass expulsion of 1.9 million Afghan refugees from Iran and Pakistan since January 2025. These actions violate international obligations under the 1951 Refugee Convention and endanger vulnerable populations. According to UN Women , women and girls represent just under one-third of returnees from Iran and about half of all returnees from Pakistan.
IBAHRI Co-Chair, Mark Stephens CBE, stated: 'The forced return of Afghans from Iran and Pakistan is alarming, particularly regarding women and children. These unprecedented expulsions are grave breaches of the customary international law principles of non-refoulement and the best interests of the child. Afghans are being thrust back into a perilous environment under Taliban rule. Urgent, coordinated international action is needed to shield vulnerable populations, secure justice and elevate accountability for human rights abuses to the forefront of the global legal agenda.'
