ICC States Vote to Remove Karim Khan — as Washington Escalates War on the Court

The prosecutor who sought arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant is dismissed over misconduct allegations he denies, amid a US campaign to dismantle the ICC

Member states of the International Criminal Court voted on Friday to dismiss prosecutor Karim Khan following allegations of sexual misconduct, two diplomatic sources told Reuters. Of the court’s 125 member states, 82 voted in favour of his removal.

Khan, 56, denies any wrongdoing. His lawyers have argued that the process leading to the vote was unlawful, procedurally unfair, and unsupported by evidence, and told Reuters he denied “any sexual relationship of any kind” with the staff member concerned. His accuser, a junior ICC lawyer, spoke publicly for the first time last week in an interview with CNN, repeating her allegation that the relationship was non-consensual.

The vote at the United Nations in New York followed a decision last month by diplomats overseeing the court’s work, who concluded that Khan had engaged in an inappropriate sexual relationship with the lawyer and should be dismissed. He had already been suspended in a decision announced by the court’s governing body, the Bureau of the Assembly of States Parties, which referred him to disciplinary proceedings while stressing that the suspension “is not an indication of the final outcome.” That step followed findings from a United Nations investigation, input from an independent panel of judicial experts, and written submissions — though the full documentation and internal assessment remain confidential.

A prosecutor under political siege

Khan’s removal comes after months of sustained Israeli opposition to his tenure, particularly following his decision to seek arrest warrants for Israeli officials over war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Israeli officials repeatedly called for his removal, rejected the court’s jurisdiction, accused it of political bias, and lobbied allies to challenge the proceedings.

It also lands as the United States escalates a renewed diplomatic campaign to dismantle the ICC, which Washington says threatens its sovereignty. Speaking during a visit to the Philippines on Thursday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said there were “lunatics and crazies involved in the ICC” and that no American political or military official would ever face trial there.

Though not a member of the court, the US has imposed sanctions on 11 ICC judges and prosecutors, Khan among them, citing the arrest warrants issued against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former security minister Yoav Gallant, as well as an earlier investigation into US troops in Afghanistan.

What happens to the warrants

Khan’s dismissal immediately triggers the process of electing a new prosecutor, though a successor is not expected to be chosen before next year.

Crucially, the court’s active arrest warrants remain in force. Only ICC judges have the authority to withdraw them — meaning the warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant stand, regardless of who occupies the prosecutor’s office.

Reference: Al-Mayadeen