Human Rights Watch (HRW) has stated that recent international developments and upcoming reports on the war in Afghanistan should provide a basis for examining and ensuring accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by all parties to the conflict.
The organization reported on Thursday, June 18, that alongside the Afghanistan War Commission report and new international reviews, there is a pressing need for a comprehensive examination of violations committed during Afghanistan's 20-year war.
The Afghanistan War Commission, established by the U.S. Congress in 2021, is expected to present its final report on lessons learned from the two-decade conflict within approximately two months.
The commission had previously indicated that the U.S. government severely undermined the state-building process by supporting strongmen and failing to establish accountable institutions.
However, some former Afghanistan officials still do not accept why conditions deteriorated to such an extent and have sought to present a positive picture of the human rights situation in the country before the Taliban takeover in August 2021.
Human Rights Watch emphasized in the report that focusing on only one side of the conflict renders justice incomplete and prevents all victims from obtaining access to justice.
The report also referred to past processes, stating that previous efforts to prevent or delay international investigations, including those at the level of the International Criminal Court (ICC), obstructed a full examination of the crimes committed.
The organization added that in some cases, even when international investigations included various forces, including the Taliban, former government forces, and foreign troops, they encountered political reactions and pressure.
Human Rights Watch stressed that to achieve sustainable justice in Afghanistan, an impartial and comprehensive mechanism must be established so that all victims can access the justice process without discrimination.
