Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem on May 12 announced the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for individuals from Afghanistan. Noem stated that the "conditions in Afghanistan" no longer warrant continuing the program, finding that it is "contrary to the national interest." TPS for Afghans was originally introduced by former president Joe Biden in March 2022 to protect the more than 70,000 Afghans who had entered the US as part of the government's "Operation Allies Welcome," after the Taliban's takeover in August 2021. (Jurist)

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) on April 15 reported that nearly 60,000 Afghan refugees have been forcibly deported from Pakistan so far this month. The latest wave of forced deportations comes amid a nationwide effort to expel foreigners, whether they are residing in Pakistan legally or illegally, in the name of "national security." Amnesty International criticized the Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan (IFRP) for being ambiguous in its criteria for deportation.

The Taliban announced on Feb. 20 that Afghanistan will no longer recognize the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC), stating that the country's 2003 accession to the Rome Statute is declared to be legally void after ICC prosecutor Karim Khan sought arrest warrants for Taliban Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada and the Chief Justice of Afghanistan Abdul Hakim Haqqani last month.

International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim AA Khan announced Jan. 23 that his office has filed applications for arrest warrants before the Pre-trial Chamber against two leading Taliban officials accused of committing crimes against humanity. These applications stem from thorough investigations conducted by the Prosecutor's Office and are part of a broader inquiry into the situation in Afghanistan.

The Peshawar High Court issued an interim order on Jan. 10 preventing the forced repatriation of around 150 Afghan singers and musicians who fled to Pakistan after the Taliban's return to power in 2021. Justice Wiqar Ahmad, who presided over the case, instructed the government to issue a decision on the musicians' asylum applications within two months. The court said that if the asylum claims are not resolved within 60 days, the interior ministry should grant permission for the petitioners to stay for a period sufficient to reach a final decision. The court also allowed the musicians to apply to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to process their asylum claims.

The United Nations Human Rights Office (OHCHR) on Dec. 5 condemned a new Taliban directive barring Afghan women and girls from attending classes at medical institutions, warning that it will have devastating consequences for the country's healthcare system. OHCHR spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani stated: "The measure is profoundly discriminatory, short-sighted and puts the lives of women and girls at risk in multiple ways. It removes the only remaining path for women and girls towards higher education and will decimate the already inadequate supply of female midwives, nurses and doctors."

Twenty-six countries on Sept. 26 expressed their support for a legal initiative to hold the Taliban accountable at the International Court of Justice for systematic human rights violations against women and girls in Afghanistan. In a joint statement, the countries condemned Taliban policies that have severely curtailed the rights of Afghan women and girls since the Taliban took control of the country in 2021.

Inadequate protections by the de facto Taliban authorities in Afghanistan continue to leave the Shi'ite Hazara community at risk of being targeted in atrocities that may amount to war crimes, according a report released May 3 by Human Rights Watch. The report emphasized the threat from the self-declared Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), which continues to carry out attacks targeting Hazara mosques, schools and neighborhoods. In the most recent such attack, on April 29, a presumed ISKP militant opened fire on worshippers at a Hazara mosque at Guzara, in western Herat province, killing six, including a child.