ICC member states vote out chief prosecutor Karim Khan after sexual misconduct allegations

The vote

On Friday, 24 July 2026, the 125 member states of the International Criminal Court voted by secret ballot at UN headquarters in New York to remove chief prosecutor Karim Khan from office. At least 82 states supported the motion, with 13 voting against and 15 abstaining. Khan, a British barrister, had led the Hague-based court’s prosecutions since 2021. He had temporarily stepped aside in early 2025, and in June 2026 the court’s 21-member bureau suspended him after deciding by a two-thirds majority that the allegations were credible. The Assembly of States Parties declared that Khan committed "serious misconduct and serious breach of duty." The vote caps a prolonged saga that has deepened internal rifts at the tribunal.

The ICC should hold itself to the highest standards. This includes ensuring a safe workplace with effective and credible mechanisms available to staff or others who experience abuse, including sexual violence or harassment.

Allegations of sexual misconduct

The allegations first surfaced in 2024, when a female aide accused Khan of sexual harassment and coercive sexual contact over several months. According to documents seen by the Associated Press, Khan engaged in a sexual relationship with the woman and later tried to prevent her from pursuing the matter. A United Nations commission investigated and, in late 2025, concluded that Khan had had non-consensual sexual contact with the aide in his office, his private apartment, and during a work trip. The Wall Street Journal reported that the aide told UN officials Khan forced her into sexual intercourse.

A panel of three judges later reviewed the probe and found shortcomings, stating that witness credibility had not been sufficiently examined. The judges said no misconduct or breach of duty had been proven. Khan’s defense team argued that the allegations were part of an orchestrated campaign to discredit him, tied to his pursuit of arrest warrants against Israeli leaders.

I reject all the accusations. This is a campaign against me for requesting arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other leaders.

Khan was unable to attend the New York session in person because US sanctions bar him from entering the United States. His lawyer, Tayab Ali, criticized the process.

...removal was determined by a process in which he was never given a fair opportunity to be heard, and in defiance of the conclusions of the independent judges who examined the full evidential record.

US sanctions and campaign against the ICC

The dismissal unfolded while the court faces an aggressive US campaign to dismantle it. In July 2026, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a "sweeping campaign to dismantle the threat posed by the International Criminal Court to US sovereignty." President Donald Trump’s administration had previously imposed sanctions on Khan and 12 other ICC staff, freezing their US assets, blocking them from travel to the United States, and denying them access to email and credit cards. Rubio said the court’s actions amount to "a war against our country" waged via legal instruments.

They are attacking not with bullets or rockets, but with legal texts, treaties, and the power of so-called international law.

The US is not a member of the ICC. The sanctions were triggered by the court’s 2024 issuance of arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Both Israel and the US reject the court’s jurisdiction.

Venezuela withdraws

Minutes after the vote on Khan, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Félix Plasencia announced that Venezuela would leave the ICC, accusing the court of "geographical bias" and of targeting countries in the Global South. The decision formalises a process that began in late 2025, when the Venezuelan parliament voted to repeal the law that ratified the Rome Statute. The ICC is currently investigating crimes against humanity in Venezuela under President Nicolás Maduro. Plasencia’s statement made no mention of Khan’s dismissal.

What comes next

The ICC’s deputy prosecutors will continue to lead the office of the prosecutor. The assembly said the search for a new chief prosecutor would begin immediately, with an appointment expected in 2027. All active arrest warrants, including those for Netanyahu and Gallant, remain in force. Khan’s lawyer said the defense team will challenge the removal decision through all available legal mechanisms. The court now faces at least a year without a permanent chief prosecutor, under sustained political and institutional pressure.