On Monday, June 8th, 2026, the ICC’s oversight body sent Karim Khan, the Chief ICC prosecutor, on compulsory leave. This follows a long probe into accusations of sexual misbehavior.
Karim Khan, the current Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), is now on compulsory leave. The ICC, through its oversight body, suspended him on Monday, June 8th, 2026. However, the sexual allegations against him began a couple of years ago.
ICC’s management and oversight body is called the ASP bureau, meaning the Assembly of State Parties bureau, and has representatives from every ICC member state.
On Monday, the bureau decided to suspend Karim Khan following a disciplinary proceeding by its expert oversight arm, the Independent Oversight Mechanism (IOM).
The ICC prosecutor has not been in office since May 2025, apparently stepping aside to prepare his defense. Hence, Monday’s suspension appears to be a mere formality.
Sexual Accusations against the ICC Prosecutor
One of Karim Khan’s aides has accused him of continued sexual harassment. These accusations are not new. The first time the accusations reached the ICC’s oversight body was in mid-2024, just a couple of years into Khan’s tenure.
In May 2024, a third party allegedly made the accusations against the Chief ICC Prosecutor, but the alleged victim did not comment. Later in October 2024, someone anonymously leaked the accusations on Twitter and disclosed the alleged victim’s name.
Hence, the ICC could no longer pursue the investigations secretly. The ASP President issued a statement a few days later, confirming the content leaked to social media. However, at the time, the ASP president, Paivi Kaukoranta from Finland, said that the IOM was unable to proceed with investigations into the ICC prosecutor’s alleged conduct.
In response, Karim Khan said the accusations were false and that he was ready to give whatever information the IOM may require.
Towards the end of 2024, pressure from civil society apparently increased, and the ASP bureau had to act. It kick-started the process, then the ICC prosecutor stepped aside, and now he is officially on suspension.
Karim Khan’s Professional Journey in Brief
Karim Khan is a British criminal lawyer who represented several high-profile individuals before the ICC before becoming its Chief Prosecutor. Among Khan’s high-profile clients was William Ruto, the current president of Kenya.
Khan became Queen’s Counsel in 2011, and worked on several high-profile cases, sometimes as a prosecutor and others as defense counsel.
He took over the role of ICC’s Chief Prosecutor from Fatou Bensouda from the Gambia, who completed her 9-year term in June 2021.
The case that now threatens to mar Karim Khan’s otherwise impressive career seems to be based on serious findings of sexual harassment. The UN’s Internal Oversight Services compiled a report and apparently revealed it to the media.
The report was said to confirm that the ICC prosecutor had sexual contact with his aide in his office, and it was not consensual. Apparently, he repeated the same sexual offense in his residence and while out on official duty, with the same victim.
The world community now waits to see if Karim Khan’s defense will be strong enough to exonerate him. Meanwhile, he remains on compulsory leave. It is important to note that only a majority vote by ASP members can remove the Chief ICC Prosecutor from office.