Headlines
UN to investigate suspected abuses in Afghanistan
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on October 6, 2025
3 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
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Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on October 6, 2025
3 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
The UN has launched an investigation into human rights abuses in Afghanistan, targeting both Taliban and foreign troops, with implications for future prosecutions.
By Emma Farge
GENEVA (Reuters) -The United Nations Human Rights Council is to investigate abuses in Afghanistan, which could eventually enable criminal investigations into suspected violations by both the Taliban and foreign troops, including those from the United States.
The United States, which had troops in Afghanistan until 2021 within a NATO coalition, has previously opposed scrutiny of its actions, for example, by the International Criminal Court, but backed research into suspected Taliban violations.
President Donald Trump has disengaged from the Geneva rights council and did not take a stance in the negotiations on the EU proposal for the investigation, diplomats said.
However, a State Department spokesperson said late on Sunday, before it was adopted on Monday without a vote: "Under the leadership of President Trump, the United States government will not tolerate international organizations that attempt to exert unlawful jurisdiction over American troops."
NO TIME LIMIT ON PROBE
The European Union motion calls for investigators to prepare evidence for future court proceedings and is among the strongest form of U.N. rights probe, on a par with existing investigations into suspected crimes in Syria and Myanmar.
For years, both Afghan and international rights groups have sought such a probe. Calls have become louder as the Taliban tightened restrictions on women and freedom of expression.
The Taliban authorities say they respect rights in line with their interpretation of Islamic law.
While the EU proposal for an investigation did not specifically mention abuses by international troops, it is described as "comprehensive" and has no time limit, meaning it could address these, diplomats said. The exact scope will be determined when investigators are appointed.
Investigations launched by the 47-member council can lead to war crimes prosecutions. Some countries which sent troops to Afghanistan, such as Britain and Australia, have initiated inquiries but prosecutions have been rare.
Fereshta Abbasi, Afghanistan researcher at Human Rights Watch, called the launch a "significant step that could break a decades-long cycle of impunity".
The new investigation would cooperate with an existing ICC probe. The ICC has previously indicated it would deprioritise suspected crimes by U.S. forces after Trump imposed sanctions in 2020 over its Afghanistan work.
China's delegate Wang Nian criticised the proposal's cost of $9.2 million over three years amid a U.N. funding crisis and said it was unbalanced.
(Reporting by Emma Farge; Additional reporting by Olivia Le Poidevin in Geneva and Stephanie Van Den Berg in The Hague; Editing by Alison Williams)
Human rights are the basic rights and freedoms that belong to every person in the world, from birth until death. They include the right to life, freedom of speech, and the right to work and education.
An international organization is an entity created by multiple countries to address common issues, promote cooperation, and facilitate communication among member states. Examples include the United Nations and the World Bank.
Accountability refers to the obligation of individuals or organizations to report, explain, and be answerable for resulting consequences of their actions. In governance, it ensures transparency and responsibility.
An investigation is a systematic process of inquiry aimed at uncovering facts, gathering evidence, and determining the truth about a specific issue or event.
Human rights investigations are crucial for identifying violations, holding perpetrators accountable, and promoting justice and reform within societies to protect individuals' rights.
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