Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, temporarily resigned on Friday until the end of the UN’s sexual misconduct investigation into his suspicious behavior against lower staff.
The move is unprecedented and there is no clear step to replace him. Khan’s office told media that two ICC prosecutors would intervene in the absence.
According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, Khan, who has been in a role at the ICC since 2021, is accused of forcing a female assistant in a hotel room in New York in December 2023.
The incident is being investigated as part of a pattern of inappropriate emotionality, harassment and alleged forced sex that took place against his accuser.
The assistant, a Malaysian lawyer in her 30s, claimed that Khan forced her to have more sex with her will during missions in New York, Colombia, Congo, Chad and Paris.
Khan’s lawyers say all allegations of sexual violence and misconduct are “decisively untrue.” His lawyers argued that the lawsuit against him was part of a broader attempt to distrust the ICC after Khan issued a warrant to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Joav Gallant about their role in the Israeli-Hamas war in Gaza.
However, the warrant was issued just two weeks after the allegations against Khan were officially leveled, raising questions as to whether it was an attempt to maintain his public image.
Khan also refused a link between an investigation into sexual misconduct and a controversial warrant via his lawyer.
Khan’s actions against Israeli officials led US President Donald Trump to issue sanctions against him.
The UN’s internal monitoring services report on alleged fraud by Khan is expected in the coming months.
