At the People’s Tribunal for Afghan Women in Madrid, prosecutor Benafsha Yaqoobi accused the Taliban of systematically dismantling the rights and support systems for persons with disabilities, calling the group’s actions a form of repression and crimes against humanity.
Addressing the second day of proceedings, Yaqoobi said that since the Taliban’s return to power, Afghanistan’s education, health and social service systems have disintegrated, leaving people with disabilities without institutional care or access to essential assistance.
She highlighted a case from Khost province, where a mother said her disabled daughter was refused hospital admission because medical staff were told they could not touch her. Yaqoobi described this as a clear denial of basic medical care and human dignity.
According to her testimony, the Taliban’s Ministry of Martyrs and Disabled Affairs, which once supported persons with disabilities, has been stripped of its public service responsibilities. This move, she said, effectively erased a critical safety net for one of Afghanistan’s most vulnerable communities.
Yaqoobi emphasized that the Taliban’s conduct does not reflect Afghan culture or tradition but instead represents a deliberate system of repression, coercion and social exclusion. She urged international institutions to pay closer attention to the situation of persons with disabilities, warning that global indifference allows these structural crimes to continue without consequence.
Observers at the tribunal noted that Yaqoobi’s testimony deepened the evidence of widespread violations under Taliban rule, adding to the growing body of documentation being gathered by rights advocates and international bodies.
Earlier sessions of the People’s Tribunal focused on broader human rights abuses under Taliban rule. In previous proceedings, Gianni Tognoni and tribunal representatives denounced what they described as gender apartheid and collective repression of Afghan women and girls. They called for a unified international response and stronger mechanisms to hold the Taliban accountable for crimes against humanity.
