ICC Chief Prosecutor to Leave After Sex Allegations
International Criminal Court ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan must leave his post following allegations of sexual harassment.
The decision was made on Friday evening by the court's supervisory body ASP, where a clear majority wanted him to leave.
Khan will appeal the decision.
Karim Khan has previously voluntarily temporarily left his post since the allegations of sexual assault became known in 2024. He has consistently denied all allegations.
The crisis meeting on Khan's future as prosecutor at the court was held at the UN headquarters in New York. Representatives of the court's 125 member states have participated in the process.
Diplomats familiar with the vote, which was held after closed-door negotiations, said 82 countries voted to remove Khan from his post. 13 countries voted against the demand to dismiss him, while 15 countries abstained. A number of countries did not participate in the vote.
Immediately after the vote, Khan's lawyer Tayab Ali wrote on X that the decision would be appealed "through available legal mechanisms."
The court and Khan have been criticized from some quarters for, among other things, issuing an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on suspicion of war crimes in Gaza.
Several countries have not joined the ICC, including Russia, China and the United States. The United States has previously imposed sanctions on Karim Khan, saying that the ICC poses a threat to US sovereignty.
The International Court of Justice (ICC) is located in The Hague, Netherlands.
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