ICC Removes Its Chief Prosecutor for the First Time

The Assembly of States Parties to the International Criminal Court has voted to remove Karim Khan as chief prosecutor, the first time the court has ousted the official who decides which of the world's worst crimes it pursues.

A large majority of the court's 125 member states found Khan had committed "serious misconduct and serious breach of duty," Assembly president Päivi Kaukoranta said. Khan, a 56-year-old British barrister, has consistently denied the allegations.

He was suspended in June while the Assembly's executive committee investigated reports that he had a sexual relationship with a female aide and tried to obstruct her from pursuing complaints. Khan disputes the committee's findings. A motion from Sierra Leone early in the session that would have raised the threshold for removal failed, and delegates moved to the vote several hours ahead of schedule.

A court under pressure

The process has exposed deep divisions between staff, human rights advocates and member states at a moment when the court is already under sustained political attack. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said the United States will press a broad campaign against the ICC, urging states to withdraw, threatening sanctions on organizations that cooperate with it and proposing travel bans for its staff. Washington previously sanctioned Khan and other officials over warrants issued for Israeli officials in the Gaza war and over inquiries into alleged crimes by U.S. personnel in Afghanistan.

Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, accused Khan of running a "political witch hunt" against Israel and suggested the allegations against him were meant to be ignored until he pursued Western targets.

Hours after the vote, Venezuela announced it would withdraw from the court. Foreign Minister Félix Plasencia said the ICC had shown "geographical bias" toward African and Latin American cases. Prosecutors said earlier this year they were dropping an inquiry into whether U.S. sanctions on Venezuela amounted to crimes against humanity, for lack of evidence; a separate investigation into alleged abuses by Venezuelan security forces continues.

Khan's removal does not disturb the warrants issued during his tenure. Those were issued by the court's judges, and only the judges can rescind them. The Assembly must now settle an interim arrangement and a process for choosing a successor.