ICC prosecutor to stay on as UN investigates alleged sexual misconduct
Sources say they want probe completed quickly to minimize impact on major cases; Karim Khan has sought war crimes warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant
THE HAGUE — International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan will be allowed to stay on in his role at the world’s permanent war crimes tribunal during a UN-led investigation into his alleged sexual misconduct, sources told Reuters on Friday.
The UN’s Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), which is leading the inquiry, has started contacting witnesses, a source with direct knowledge of the investigation said.
Khan denies the allegations. He has said he will cooperate with an inquiry and that matters relating to the misconduct allegations will be dealt with by his two deputies.
Khan’s office and lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
A diplomatic source, who also spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a confidential investigation, said the court’s governing body wanted the inquiry concluded quickly to limit its impact on several major cases before the Hague-based institution.
The ICC’s governing body said last month that it would seek an external investigation into the allegations, “to ensure a fully independent, impartial and fair process.”
The ICC is a permanent court that can prosecute individuals for war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and the crime of aggression in member states or by their nationals.
Khan noted in October when the allegations were first reported that his office had been the target of a “wide range of attacks and threats” that had coincided with several high-profile war crimes investigations.
The accusations against Khan surfaced when two court employees in whom the alleged victim confided came forward with the accusation in May, a few weeks before Khan sought arrest warrants against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his then-defense minister Yoav Gallant, and three Hamas leaders on war crimes charges over the Palestinian terrorist organization’s October 7, 2023, atrocities and the subsequent war in Gaza.
A three-judge panel last month signed off on those charges for the Israeli officials and one of the three Hamas leaders whose death the terror group has not yet confirmed.
The war in Gaza was sparked on October 7, 2023, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists stormed southern Israel to kill some 1,200 people and take 251 hostages. Israel’s counteroffensive has killed more than 44,000 people, according to the Hamas health ministry. The figure cannot be independently verified and does not distinguish between civilians and combatants, of whom Israel says it has killed at least 17,000 in Gaza, in addition to about 1,000 inside Israel during the onslaught.
In 2023, the court ordered the arrest of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova, Russia’s commissioner for children’s rights, accusing them of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. They deny the allegations.
Several NGOs and members of the prosecutor’s staff have urged Khan to step down during the inquiry to avoid it interfering with work by the office.
The case involving Khan was initially referred to the ICC’s oversight mechanism in May, but it said it would not proceed because the victim had not confirmed the allegations. No official investigation was opened at that time.
