The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Karim Khan was suspended from his duties on Monday evening due to suspicion of sexual misconduct, reports dpa on Tuesday.
The final decision on his eventual removal from office will be made at a special session of the member states of the court, announced the ICC supervisory body in The Hague. The meeting will be held as soon as possible.
The executive board of the ICC’s supervisory body said that such an assessment was made on the basis of “an investigation report conducted by the United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), evidence, advice from an ad hoc panel of judicial experts and written submissions”.
In 2024, a close colleague accused a British prosecutor of sexual misconduct. Khan allegedly repeatedly harassed her over a long period of time and forced her into sexual acts, writes dpa.
A United Nations commission investigated the allegations and submitted its report in December 2025, but the report is not publicly available.
Three judges of that international court submitted a legal opinion based on the investigation. That opinion has not been published either.
Khan, 56, has said he wants to return to duty as soon as the allegations, which he denies, are cleared up.
Khan, as chief prosecutor, has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin, among others, since 2021.
The United States has stepped up pressure on the court, particularly over the arrest warrant against Netanyahu, and has imposed sanctions on staff and judges.
A total of 125 countries have signed the founding treaty of the court, including all EU member states. The USA, Russia and Israel are not members of the court.
(TYPE/Source: Hina/Photo: Denhaag.nl)
