On Thursday 11 December 2025, the International Institute of Social Studies in The Hague hosted the Judgement Issuing Session of the People’s Tribunal on Women of Afghanistan. , marking a historical moment in global efforts to document, name and advance accountability for systematic violations of women’s and girls’ rights under Taliban rule.
The Tribunal responded to the devastating and escalating human rights crisis facing Afghan women and girls, including the near-total exclusion from education, employment, healthcare, public life and civic participation.
With domestic justice mechanisms unavailable and international accountability slow and fragmented, Afghan civil society identified an urgent need for a complementary, people-centred mechanism to amplify women’s voices and establish an authoritative record of harm.
Findings: A systematic campaign for gendered oppression
The Tribunal found overwhelming evidence that the Taliban have implemented a deliberate, widespread and institutionalized regime of repression against women and girls. This includes:
- Severe restrictions on freedom of movement, dress, education, employment, expression and assembly.
- Arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances, torture, sexual violence and punishment for perceived moral 'offences'.
- Forced marriages, denial of healthcare, rising maternal mortality and lack of access to justice.
- Criminalization of peaceful protest and reprisals against women human rights defenders and journalists.
The judges emphasized the intersectional nature of the harm, noting intensified persecution of women and girls from ethnic and religious minorities, including Hazara and Shia communities, as well as women with disabilities. The consequences extend beyond individual suffering to the erosion of Afghanistan’s social fabric, producing deep psychosocial harm, intergenerational trauma and fear that persists even in exile.
The Final Judgement: Charges and responsibility
The Panel of Judges issued a clear and unequivocal legal determination:
- Count 1: Gender Persecution as a Crime Against Humanity
The Tribunal found that the Taliban’s institutionalised discrimination against women and girls satisfies the legal definition of gender persecution under Article 7(1)(h) of the Rome Statute. Individual Taliban leaders and the Taliban as a group, acting as the de facto governing authority, bear responsibility under international criminal law for crimes against humanity.
- Count 2: Other Inhumane Acts
The Tribunal determined that the Taliban’s actions also constitute “other inhumane acts” under Article 7(1)(k) of the Rome Statute, as they intentionally cause great physical and mental suffering. While the system imposed on Afghan women meets the constitutive elements of an apartheid-like regime, the judges noted that because the discrimination is based on gender rather than race, it currently falls outside the codified definition of apartheid in international criminal law.
- Count 3: Violations of International Human Rights Law
The Tribunal found that the State of Afghanistan, under the Taliban’s de facto control, has intentionally and systematically deprived women and girls of their core human rights, in violation of binding international human rights obligations. These violations have far-reaching implications beyond Afghanistan’s borders, engaging the responsibilities of the international community.
Recommendations and a Call to Action
The Tribunal issued wide-ranging recommendations to the United Nations, the ICC, states, Islamic institutions, civil society and the media. Central to all recommendations is the requirement that Afghan women and girls are not treated merely as victims, but as rights-holders, agents and leaders in accountability processes.
The session concluded by honouring the dignity, courage and resilience of Afghan women who testified and contributed evidence. Their refusal to remain silent, judges noted, is itself an act of profound resistance.
As the Tribunal stated, the hope is that this judgment will serve as a tool for accountability that moves the international community beyond rhetoric and toward concrete actions capable of transforming the lives of women and girls in Afghanistan.
The Importance of the Tribunal
The People’s Tribunal ruling establishes a credible factual and legal record that states and international institutions can no longer dismiss as matters of culture, religion or internal politics. It draws a clear boundary in international law and global norms: the deliberate exclusion of half a population from public life constitutes gender apartheid.
By naming the crimes, identifying responsibility and centring the lived experiences of Afghan women and girls, the Tribunal provides both a legal framework and a normative imperative for action. It strengthens ongoing efforts before international mechanisms, including the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice, and reinforces calls for the formal recognition of gender apartheid as a crime under international law.
Background to the Tribunal
In December 2024, four Afghan human rights organizations – Rawadari, Afghanistan Human Rights and Democracy Organization (AHRDO), Organization for Policy Research and Development Studies (DROPS), and Human Rights Defender Plus (HRD+) – submitted a formal request to the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal (PPT), based in Rome, to convene a People’s Tribunal on Afghanistan.
Recognizing the systematic nature of the abuses and the gender-based targeting of women and girls, the PPT approved the request in February 2025. A full evidentiary hearing is scheduled for October 2025. The December session at ISS presented the Tribunal’s legal findings, judgment, and recommendations, drawing on extensive documentation, expert analysis, and testimonies from Afghan women inside the country and in exile.