Overview
- A junior ICC lawyer identified only as Sarah gave her first on-camera interview on July 16, repeating allegations that Khan subjected her to non-consensual touching, groping and other sexual acts described in a leaked UN investigative file.
- Diplomats who run the court’s oversight body have concluded Khan had an inappropriate sexual relationship with a junior staffer and formally recommended he be fired, a step that moves the matter to a vote by the court’s 125 member states on July 24.
- Khan denies any sexual contact with the complainant and is contesting procedural findings while his lawyer says the claims require serious judicial review; he is also suspended from practising law in the UK under an upheld Bar Standards Board order.
- Multiple probes have produced conflicting readings of the same evidence, with a UN internal report reported to find a factual basis for the complainant’s account and other internal reviews reaching different legal conclusions about misconduct.
- The case has human consequences for the complainant and wider implications for the court’s credibility, with supporters of Khan calling the accusations politically motivated because of his past pursuit of warrants tied to the Israel-Gaza conflict.