THE HAGUE (AFP, REUTERS) - International war crimes judges on Thursday (March 5) ruled that a probe into wartime abuses in Afghanistan must go ahead, including looking into possible atrocities committed by US forces, as they overturned a previous court ruling.
The Hague-based International Criminal Court's (ICC) ruling comes days after Taleban militants killed at least 20 Afghan soldiers and policemen in a string of overnight attacks, throwing the country's nascent peace process into grave doubt.
The United States on Wednesday also carried out its first air strike on Taleban fighters in Afghanistan, since the two sides signed a troop withdrawal agreement on Saturday.
A US forces spokesman confirmed the latest incident in southern Helmand province, hours after President Donald Trump spoke by phone with chief Taleban negotiator Mullah Baradar Akhund on Tuesday, the first known conversation between a US leader and a top Taleban official.
The Taleban fighters "were actively attacking an (Afghan National Security Forces) checkpoint. This was a defensive strike to disrupt the attack," Colonel Sonny Leggett, a spokesman for US Forces, Afghanistan, said in a tweet.
Under the terms of the recent US-Taleban agreement, foreign forces will quit Afghanistan within 14 months, subject to Taleban security guarantees and a pledge by the insurgents to hold talks with Kabul.
A US-led force invaded Afghanistan in 2001 following the 9/11 terror attacks in the US, targeting Al-Qaeda in the sanctuaries provided by the Taleban government.
Fighting has continued since - last year more than 3,400 civilians were killed and almost 7,000 injured, according to data provided by UN agencies.
Pre-trial judges at the ICC last year rejected a demand by its chief prosecutor to open a full-blown probe into crimes committed in Afghanistan - an investigation also bitterly opposed by Washington.
Prosecutors appealedagainst the move, saying that the judges made an error when they slapped down prosecutor Fatou Bensouda's request by sayingthat although it met all the right criteria and had a reasonable basis, it was "not in the interest of justice". The appeals judges agreed with the prosecution.
"The prosecutor is authorised to commence an investigation into alleged crimes committed on the territory of Afghanistan since May 1, 2003," ICC Judge Piotr Hofmanski said.
"It is for the prosecutor to determine whether there is a reasonable basis to initiate an investigation," under the court's statutes, Judge Hofmanski said.
In 2006, the ICC's prosecutors opened a preliminary probe into possible war crimes and crimes against humanity in the central Asian nation since 2003.
In 2017, Ms Bensouda asked judges to allow a full-blown inquiry, not only into Taleban and Afghan government personnel, but also international forces, US troops and members of the Central Intelligence Agency.
However, pre-trial judges then said it "would not serve the interests of justice" and that the court should focus on cases with a better chance of success.
On Thursday, human rights groups hailed the decision to uphold the prosecutions' appeal.
"The decision also sends a much-needed signal to current and would-be perpetrators of atrocities that justice may one day catch up to them," Human Rights Watch's Mr Param-Preet Singh said.
The US has never joined the ICC. Washington argues that it has its own procedures in place to deal with US troops who engage in misconduct.
Afghanistan also opposed the inquiry, saying the country itself had "responsibility to bring justice for our nation and for our people".
A dispute over prisoner release also threatens the US-led peace effort. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani - whose government is not a party to the US-Taleban pact - opposed the release of up to 5,000 Taleban prisoners in exchange for up to 1,000 Afghan government captives, by March 10.
