The oversight body of the International Criminal Court has recommended that chief prosecutor Karim Khan be removed from office after finding that he engaged in an inappropriate sexual relationship with a junior staff member and committed “non-consensual sexual contact,” Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing internal ICC documents.
The recommendation stems from a yearlong U.N.-commissioned investigation into allegations first raised in 2024. According to the June 8 decision reviewed by Reuters, the relationship began in March 2023 and “escalated over time.” The bureau concluded that the power imbalance between Khan and the complainant meant that “a sexual relationship could never be appropriate.”
The decision cited findings that Khan’s conduct escalated into non-consensual sexual contact in his office, at his private residence and during official travel. The bureau recommended the “removal from office of the elected official, prosecutor Karim Khan,” according to the document.
Khan has repeatedly denied wrongdoing in the disciplinary proceedings, which were brought after a female lawyer accused him of misconduct in 2024.
The ICC’s 125-member Assembly of States Parties is scheduled to vote on Khan’s removal on July 24 in New York. Khan was suspended earlier this month pending the outcome of the proceedings.
Israeli officials last year urged the court to halt its war-crimes investigation of Israel in light of the misconduct allegations against Khan.
The Wall Street Journal reported last year that Khan asked the complainant to withdraw her allegations so that he could proceed with seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
The executive bureau comprises representatives of 21 ICC member states. The United States has sanctioned several ICC officials, including Khan, in response to the court’s investigations involving the United States and Israel.
