Thomas Harding
The National / May 16, 2025
International Criminal Court’s Karim Khan vigorously denies claims but takes temporary leave of absence.
The head of the International Criminal Court’s prosecution for war crimes against Israel’s prime minister has stepped aside as he is investigated for alleged sexual misconduct, the court announced on Friday.
Karim Khan (55) is facing allegations that he attempted to coerce a female aide into a sexual relationship and groped her against her will.
The British barrister has vigorously denied the claims, suggesting he faced a “smear campaign”, but has decided to temporarily step aside while the case is investigated.
In May last year he came under intense international scrutiny after he announced the ICC’s decision to apply for arrest warrants against Benjamin Netanyahu and his then defence minister Yoav Gallant, on the grounds that they may have committed war crimes by restricting humanitarian aid and intentionally targeting civilians in Gaza.
But an Associated Press investigation found that ICC employees in whom the alleged victim of the sexual misconduct confided in, came forward with the accusation in May last year, a few weeks before the application for the international arrest warrants.
His departure causes further uncertainty for the ICC, which is already facing a crisis after US President Donald Trump imposed sanctions earlier this year following the implementation of the Israeli arrest warrants.
Members of Congress have also started an investigation into whether the allegations might have clouded Mr Khan’s judgment and influenced him to carry out the war crime charges.
But the lawyer has claimed that he is the victim of a smear campaign, recently stating “my family including my wife and child have also been targeted”.
The ICC’s chief prosecutor since 2021, and the man who previously headed the UN team investigating crimes committed by ISIS, has also been personally targeted for sanctions.
Entities have withdrawn support for him with Microsoft cancelling his email address and his bank accounts in Britain have been blocked.
When the allegations against Mr Khan originally emerged in October last year several NGOs and ICC staff members called for the prosecutor to step down for the duration of the investigation, but he stayed on.
The ICC said in a statement that Mr Khan on Friday “communicated his decision to take leave until the end” of an external investigation being carried by the Office of Internal Oversight Services, the UN internal watchdog.
The ICC’s two deputy prosecutors will take over his duties in the meantime, the court said.
Thomas Harding is a journalist and documentary maker
