Exclusive: ICC Prosecutor Faces Sexual Misconduct Claims
Sandego.net – The International Criminal Court (ICC) is facing mounting pressure as member nations prepare to vote this month on whether to remove Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan following a comprehensive investigation into sexual misconduct allegations. For several months, the United Nations oversight body has been examining claims brought forward by a female ICC employee who served as Khan’s direct assistant. A confidential, leaked UN investigative report obtained by CNN reveals that she accused Khan of sexual harassment and repeatedly subjecting her to non-consensual sexual acts, including groping, attempted kissing, and both digital and genital penetration.
Allegations Emerge and Denials Follow
Khan has consistently denied all allegations against him. While the claims first surfaced in 2024, the accuser, known as Sarah, has remained silent until now. Sarah, a Malaysian lawyer who joined the ICC in 2017, expressed that she never sought this public confrontation and described feeling “humiliated.” CNN is identifying her only by her first name, per her request. “I have no other way to describe it but an escalation of attempts,” Sarah explained regarding the alleged misconduct, which she says continued for a year after beginning work as Khan’s assistant in February 2023. “(There was) the pawing, the physical nature of it – but it didn’t start that way.”
“Because it was kind of like encroachments on the boundaries slowly – not just physically but emotionally as well,” Sarah told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour in a world-exclusive interview.
Sarah described moments of freezing and being afraid to refuse Khan’s advances, fearing the loss of her job, livelihood, and work visa that allows her to reside in the Netherlands with her husband and son. “There is no way for something to be consensual when you have such a power disparity. What I think many people don’t understand is that Mr. Khan was not just my boss, he was everyone’s boss,” she stated. “And it cannot be consensual.”
The court’s oversight body suspended Khan in June during disciplinary proceedings, which have now been referred to the ICC’s 125 member states. Representatives from each member state are scheduled to decide on July 24 whether to uphold his suspension and determine any disciplinary measures. Khan and his supporters have suggested the allegations represent an effort to tarnish his reputation following his pursuit of warrants against Israeli officials for alleged war crimes.
Khan’s lead counsel, Sareta Ashraph, responded to CNN: “These are serious allegations and they needed to be taken seriously, investigated seriously and undergo a serious judicial review. And that is what has happened.” Ashraph emphasized that “they are allegations which form part of a much larger body of evidence. Mr. Khan has denied and continues to deny them in their entirety – any form of sexual content, relationship, consensual or nonconsensual, with the complainant.”
CNN has obtained a copy of the UN oversight office’s report, circulated internally in December, which found evidence demonstrating a “factual basis” to the claims based on interviews with Sarah, her colleagues, and other witnesses. Sarah’s name is redacted from the report, where she is referred to as “V01.” However, a March report by the ICC’s panel of judicial experts concluded there was “insufficient evidence to support a finding of misconduct measured against the standard of proof of beyond reasonable doubt,” noting that the UN watchdog’s factual findings “do not establish misconduct or breach of duty.”
Then earlier this month, The New York Times reported that another internal ICC report found that Khan committed sexual harassment when he engaged in sexual activity with a junior member of his staff, referring to Sarah.
The New York Times also noted that Khan initially did not clearly deny a sexual relationship with his subordinate and later sought to dissuade his accuser from pursuing the allegations. CNN cannot independently verify that report’s findings, which remain unreleased. Khan’s lead counsel maintains that the UN OIOS report “does not have the same standing as the panel of judges,” adding “it does not apply a standard of proof.” She explained that the UN investigation’s role was to assemble facts, and in doing so “it presented a number of conflicting narratives.”
In her CNN interview, Sarah recounted early interactions with Khan that caused discomfort, alleging the behavior eventually escalated into more aggressive actions. She describes incidents including Khan coming to her hotel room late at night and, on one occasion, pushing to join her for a “nap” while groping her down her leggings as she pretended to be asleep.
In a previous interview with journalist Christiane Amanpour, Sarah provided additional context about the power dynamics at play within the ICC, emphasizing that her position as an assistant made it particularly difficult to speak out against her superior without risking her career and immigration status.
