THE HAGUE: The International Criminal Court on Monday unsealed arrest warrants for two Afghan education ministers accused of committing crimes against humanity through the Taliban government’s restrictions on women and girls.
The warrants, for Habibullah Agha, minister of education, and Neda Mohammad Nadeem, minister of higher education, were issued in September 2025 but remained under seal until Monday.
The two officials are accused of gender-based persecution linked to policies that have barred girls from attending school beyond primary level and excluded women from higher education following the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021.
The ICC warrants were likely to increase international pressure on the Taliban government. AFP has approached Taliban authorities for comment on the ICC’s unsealed warrants.
The two warrants against the ministers were issued after the ICC, in July 2025, authorised warrants for Afghanistan’s Supreme Taliban Leader Haibatullah Akhundzada and Supreme Court President Abdul Hakim Haqqani, parts of which have been made public.