The ICC will begin an investigation into the prosecutor who issued the arrest warrant for Putin

Karim Khan, photo: Getty Images

The International Criminal Court’s governing body will launch an external investigation into chief prosecutor Karim Khan over allegations of sexual misconduct.

Source: Reuters naming two spies familiar with the matter.

Details: An internal document sent to member states calls for Khan to step back from his duties at the Hague-based international war crimes court while an investigation is underway.

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The undated and unsigned document, seen by journalists, was sent to member countries by ICC staff.

Khan’s office referred questions to his lawyer, and phone calls and multiple requests for comment to his lawyers went unanswered, Reuters reported.

Khan denies allegations of misconduct reported to the court’s governing body last month. He then asked a watchdog within the court to investigate the allegations.

A source familiar with the matter said the external review was approved at a meeting Thursday of the court’s governing body, the Assembly of States Parties.

ICC judges are currently considering Khan’s request, filed in May, for arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his defense minister and Hamas leaders. Khan said the allegations of misconduct coincided with a decriminalization campaign targeting his department.

An internal document circulated for discussion argues that the court’s independent internal body that assesses conduct cases should have launched a formal inquiry into the allegations when the build first.

A source familiar with the matter said the defendant in the Khan case had no confidence in the independence of the court’s internal body, whose new chairman is a Khan employee. , as details of the misconduct reports were released.

The document also shows that there is pressure on Khan to temporarily step aside and allow one of his clients to act as a prosecutor while the investigation continues.

Background Information:

Read more about this event in the EuroPravda article: International law of force. What are the consequences of Mongolia’s refusal to arrest Putin on an ICC warrant?.