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Geopolitics · ICC · Karim Khan · Misconduct
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has scheduled a July 24 vote to remove chief prosecutor Karim Khan from office after its oversight body found sexual assault allegations against him credible, concluding he committed serious misconduct.
The findings, from a group of diplomats from 21 countries overseeing the court, state that Mr. Khan should be removed, and their report is circulating among the ICC's 125 member nations ahead of the vote at the United Nations headquarters in New York.
An aide to Mr. Khan accused him of coercing her into sex multiple times, with the UN investigation finding her testimony believable and without evidence of external pressure.
Mr. Khan denies the allegations, with his lawyers calling the report "deeply flawed" and unlawful.
The prosecutor had previously suggested the allegations were part of an Israeli intelligence operation, a claim denied by his lawyers and unsupported by the oversight body's report. Mr.
Khan, who sought arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, has been on leave since May of last year. His removal would usher in a period of uncertainty for the ICC, the world's leading body for prosecuting war crimes.
