ICC prosecutor Karim Khan suspended

What's happened

The ICCs oversight bureau has suspended Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan and referred him to disciplinary proceedings after finding he had committed serious misconduct. The bureau has sent the case to the Assembly of States Parties, which will hold a special session to decide whether to remove him; Khan denies wrongdoing and will challenge the decision.

What's behind the headline?

What the bureau has done

• The Bureau of the Assembly of States Parties has suspended Karim Khan and referred disciplinary proceedings to the full Assembly of States Parties. The suspension is immediate but the bureau said it "is not an indication of the final outcome."

What the evidence record looks like

• A United Nations investigation has found a factual basis for allegations of non-consensual sexual contact. A separate three-judge panel convened by the bureau has judged the UN findings inconclusive for legal purposes. The bureau has nevertheless judged the overall record sufficient to suspend Khan and refer the matter for a full member-state vote.

Why this matters now

• The Assembly of States Parties will hold a special session to vote on removal. Removal will require a majority in a secret ballot of the 125 member states, including at least 63 affirmative votes. The bureau has asked the assembly to treat the case as a high priority, and the assembly will therefore decide the prosecutors fate.

Likely consequences

• The suspension will not immediately change the courts operations because Khan has been on leave since May 2025 and has already been removed from pleading in at least one high-profile case. The referral will, however, force member states to take a formal position; a removal vote will politicise the court and could affect its standing with key allies.

Forecast

• The Assembly will convene a special session and will vote. Khans legal team has vowed to challenge the bureau decision; that legal contest will prolong the process and keep the courts leadership under strain. The case will increase scrutiny on the courts internal procedures and protections for staff.

How we got here

Allegations first emerged in 2024 and have produced UN and internal reviews. Khan took voluntary leave in May 2025. The bureau based its referral on a UN investigative report, written submissions and advice from judicial experts.

Our analysis

The sources present a consistent narrative about the bureaus action but differ on emphasis and quoted detail. The New York Times (Jeanna Smialek) reports that a majority of the 21-member bureau found Khan had committed "serious misconduct" and notes the bureau kept its decision confidential while referring the matter to the Assembly. The Guardian (Harry Davies) cites a document saying the committee "voted by qualified majority" to determine Khan had committed serious misconduct and reports the allegations date from 20232024; it quotes Khans denials that he has "harassed or mistreated any individual." AP News and Reuters coverage reproduced the bureaus statement that the suspension "is not an indication of the final outcome," and both note the UN investigation found evidence of "nonconsensual sexual contact" while a three-judge legal panel found that the UN findings were not legally conclusive. Al Jazeera summarises the same sequence and adds that Khan has linked the inquiry to political attacks over high-profile arrest warrants, quoting his defenders who call the process unfair. The Independent and The Times of Israel report diplomatic sources saying the bureau recommended removal and emphasise that member states will vote in a special session. Across outlets, Khans lawyers have issued the same statement calling the decision "unlawful, procedurally unfair and unsupported by evidence." These direct quotations and overlapping facts show agreement on the core events while reporting differs on how strongly sources characterise the bureaus finding and on which contextual details each outlet highlights.

Go deeper

• What vote threshold will the Assembly of States Parties need to remove Khan?
• What did the UN report say about locations and timing of the alleged incidents?

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