Karim Khan, the most senior prosecutor at the International Criminal Court (ICC), has denied allegations of sexual harassment and requested an immediate investigation.
In a press release, he announced he had asked Independent Oversight Mechanism to conduct the investigation.
He also said that he had asked for an investigation into what he called apparent “disinformation’ related to the case.
This move comes in response to recent media reports that cited a document detailing accusations against Mr Khan. These include unwanted sexual contact and “abuse”.
Mr Khan has denied this and said that he will fully cooperate with the investigation.
The ICC has come under intense scrutiny since the prosecutor requested arrest warrants in connection with the conflict in Gaza.
This comes after the president of ICC’s Assembly of States Parties, the court’s legislative and management oversight body, revealed that the IOM was in contact with the alleged victims, but that it wasn’t in a position at that time to conduct an investigation.
According to the Guardian, the female attorney who was subjected by Mr Khan to unwanted sexual advances over a long period of time, in different locations, was concerned about the IOM’s competence, and was not given the opportunity to have this matter investigated by a third party.
ASP President Paivi kaukoranta referred to the IOM’s annual report 2023-2024, which stated that “following the conversation the alleged victim had, the IOM wasn’t in a position at that time to proceed with an inquiry.” The IOM recommended measures to protect everyone’s rights.”
In a previous statement, Mr Khan didn’t explicitly blame Israel but juxtaposed the sexual misconduct accusations and efforts to undermine the position when he said that this was “a moment where myself and the International Criminal Court were subject to a range of attacks and threats”.
The allegations of sexual misconduct are believed to have predated his request for arrest warrants related to the conflict in Gaza.
Three ICC judges are currently examining Mr Khan’s request to issue arrest warrants against Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Gaza.
The court of final resort was established to deal with the worst crimes of international nature, when countries are unable to or unwilling to prosecute individuals of high rank accused of atrocities.
Mr Khan said that he learned that the accusations would be “aired public” with “deep sorrow”, and that “there was no truth to such suggestions of misconduct”.
The serious allegations reached the public at a time when the ICC was under pressure.
The Hague-based ICC, which is based in the Netherlands, now faces a crisis that is unprecedented. Internal disputes over the handling and politicisation of the allegations are intensifying, as are apparent attempts by critics of the court to politicise the accusations.
Kaukoranta stated that the ICC has a “zero tolerance policy” for prohibited conduct such as sexual harassment, harassment and discrimination, and that she remained in contact with “all individuals concerned to ensure everyone’s rights are safeguarded”.