Danish Sidduiqi families files case against Taliban in International Criminal Court

Tags: International News

The family of the  slain  Indian photojournalist Danish Siddiqui has filed a case against the Taliban in the International Criminal Court (ICC)  pleading  for an investigation into the circumstances leading to his death in Afghanistan on 16 July 2021. 

The family is seeking legal action against high level Taliban leaders and commanders accusing them of torturing and  killing Sidduiqi becausing he was an Indian.

Danish Siddiqui was a Pulitzer prize winning journalist working for Reuters news agency in Afghanistan. He was killed when Taliban attacked the Afghan special forces with which Danish was travelling in Kandahar province’s Spin Boldak district, a town near Afghanistan Pakistan Border.

Taliban has denied that it tortured and killed Danish Siddiqui.

The International Criminal Court has been engaged in an ongoing investigation on international crimes, including crimes against humanity and war crimes, in Afghanistan, over which it has jurisdiction after Afghanistan’s government acceded to the Rome treaty 1998. 

India is not a member of the International Criminal Court. 

International Criminal Court(ICC) 

It was set up in July 2002 under the Rome treaty of 1998. 

• It is the only permanent court to prosecute persons for crimes against humanity, genocide, war crimes and crimes of agression. 

• At present 123 countries are its members. The United States, China, and Israel are not its members.

•  The court's jurisdiction  extends to offences that occurred after July 1, 2002, that were committed either in a state that has ratified the agreement or by a national of such a state or the case which was referred to it by the United Nations Security Council.

• The Headquarters of ICC: The Hague, Netherlands 

• ICC is different from the International Court of Justice (ICJ). ICJ is a United Nations court which hears disputes involving the member states of the United Nations.