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The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) will face disciplinary proceedings over allegations of sexual misconduct, it has been reported.
Karim Khan KC, who investigates war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, has been placed on leave pending an investigation into the allegations.
Khan, who is accused of having a non-consensual sexual interaction with a lawyer in his office, denies any wrongdoing.
In a vote taken on Wednesday by a core group of member states, 15 people voted in favor, two abstained and four voted against continuing the disciplinary process, two sources told Reuters.
The ICC, the world’s criminal court of last resort, has been rocked by the investigation into Khan, the institution’s most prominent official, as well as US sanctions over the case. An arrest warrant has been issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, former defense minister, on suspicion of war crimes.
A report from United Nations (UN) investigators found a “factual basis” for the allegations of sexual misconduct, and that witness accounts “supported his claims”, the source said.
However, a second report by three judges analyzing the UN report found that the evidence was insufficient to prove the truth of the allegations “beyond reasonable doubt”, they said.
Khan’s lawyers claimed in late March that the judges unanimously concluded that “the factual findings do not demonstrate any misconduct or breach of duty.”
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A group of African countries said the disciplinary process should end, arguing that the judge had acquitted Khan.
However, other countries, including the ICC’s biggest supporters, chose to continue the process.
Officials from the prosecutor’s office also opposed Khan’s continued duties as chief prosecutor in a letter read at Wednesday’s meeting.
The prosecutor’s office declined to comment on the development because the process is ongoing.
