Diplomatic sources say International Criminal Court member states voted to remove chief prosecutor Karim Ahmad Khan following sexual misconduct allegations.

Jul 24 ETConfirmed

World Desk

The Assembly of States Parties of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has voted to remove prosecutor Karim Khan over sexual misconduct allegations, his legal team has confirmed, suggesting that the move was “political”.

Assembly of States President Päivi Kaukoranta said 82 of ⁠the court’s 125 member states voted in ⁠favor of the prosecutor’s ⁠removal, concluding that Khan “committed serious misconduct and a serious breach of duty. “The desperate attempts by Israeli occupation representatives and apologists, linking the vote to remove the Prosecutor of the ICC to the ongoing and independent investigation in the Situation in the State of Palestine, including the arrest warrants against alleged criminal Israeli officials, committing crimes under the Court’s mandate, are highly cynical,” it said.

Norway’s Deputy Foreign Minister Andreas Kravik, whose country voted to remove Khan, said before the session that the prosecutor was “unfit” to serve. The ICC said after Khan’s dismissal that the prosecutor’s office “remains committed to conducting independent and impartial investigations and prosecutions across all situations under the Court’s jurisdiction to deliver justice for victims of Rome Statute crimes”.

“The world, and not least the victims of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, needs an International Criminal Court that functions effectively,” he said. Kaukoranta said the assembly “fully respected” Khan’s due process and that the OIOS investigation did find evidence supporting the allegations of misconduct.

Tayab Ali, head of Khan’s legal team, noted that a judicial panel had “unanimously” determined that findings by the United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services “did not establish misconduct or breach of duty by Mr Khan under the relevant legal framework”.

Khan will challenge the decision, his attorney Tayab Ali said in a statement after the vote, adding that it was “unsupported by any lawful or properly reasoned finding that Mr Khan KC committed misconduct or breached his duties.

The vote on Friday came as the ICC faces backlash from the United States and Israel after Khan issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his then-Defence Minister Yoav Gallant in 2024. “Mr Khan’s removal was determined by a process in which he was never given a fair opportunity to be heard, and in defiance of the conclusions of the independent judges who examined the full evidential record,” Ali said.

Khan’s accuser, named only ⁠as Sarah, recently told CNN that Khan had shown escalating behaviour of touching and groping her, recounting a time she said he touched her intimately while she was pretending to be asleep. Yechiel Leiter, Israel’s ambassador to the US, claimed without evidence that Khan issued arrest warrants against Israeli officials “to divert attention from his sex crimes”.

What's confirmed

The Assembly of States Parties of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has voted to remove prosecutor Karim Khan over sexual misconduct allegations, his legal team has confirmed, suggesting that the move was…
The Assembly of States Parties of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has voted to remove prosecutor Karim Khan over sexual misconduct allegations, his legal team has confirmed, suggesting that the move was “political
Assembly of States President Päivi Kaukoranta said 82 of ⁠the court’s 125 member states voted in ⁠favor of the prosecutor’s ⁠removal, concluding that Khan “committed serious misconduct and a serious breach of duty.
Norway’s Deputy Foreign Minister Andreas Kravik, whose country voted to remove Khan, said before the session that the prosecutor was “unfit” to serve.
“The world, and not least the victims of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, needs an International Criminal Court that functions effectively,” he said.
Tayab Ali, head of Khan’s legal team, noted that a judicial panel had “unanimously” determined that findings by the United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services “did not establish misconduct or breach of duty by

What's still developing

The vote on Friday came as the ICC faces backlash from the United States and Israel after Khan issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his then-Defence Minister Yoav Gallant in 2024.
Tayab Ali, head of Khan’s legal team, noted that a judicial panel had “unanimously” determined that findings by the United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services “did not establish misconduct or breach of duty…
“The decision has grave implications beyond Mr Khan’s individual case,” said Ali.
The ICC said on Friday that Khan’s office will now be headed by deputy prosecutors Nazhat Shameen Khan and Mame Mandiaye Niang.
“Mr Khan’s removal was determined by a process in which he was never given a fair opportunity to be heard, and in defiance of the conclusions of the independent judges who examined the full evidential record,” Ali said.
Khan’s accuser, named only ⁠as Sarah, recently told CNN that Khan had shown escalating behaviour of touching and groping her, recounting a time she said he touched her intimately while she was pretending to be asleep.
Yechiel Leiter, Israel’s ambassador to the US, claimed without evidence that Khan issued arrest warrants against Israeli officials “to divert attention from his sex crimes”.
“The desperate attempts by Israeli occupation representatives and apologists, linking the vote to remove the Prosecutor of the ICC to the ongoing and independent investigation in the Situation in the State of…

Sources

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