Karim Khan, the International Criminal Court's (ICC) third chief prosecutor since 2021, was removed from office by a vote of ICC member states on July 24, 2026, at the United Nations headquarters in New York [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8]. Eighty-two of the 125 members voted in favor of his removal, surpassing the required majority of 63 votes [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8]. Khan, aged 56, has been on voluntary leave since May 2025 and suspended since June 8, 2026, pending investigations into alleged misconduct [1, 2, 3, 5, 8].
ICC disciplinary proceedings found Khan guilty of "serious misconduct" and "serious breach of duty" stemming from an improper sexual relationship with a junior ICC staff lawyer known publicly as "Sarah," and efforts to obstruct her complaint [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. Sarah accused Khan of coercive and non-consensual sexual behavior, highlighting a significant power imbalance, stating, "There is no way for something to be consensual when you have such a power disparity" [9, 3, 6, 7, 8]. Khan denies all allegations, with his lawyer Sareta Ashraph saying, "He denies any form of sexual contact, relationship, consensual or non-consensual with the alleged victim" and claims the investigative process was unlawful and unfair [1, 9, 10, 4, 6, 7, 8].
Due to U.S. sanctions related to ICC investigations into alleged Israeli war crimes, Khan was unable to attend the vote in New York [1, 10, 7]. The U.S. government welcomed his removal. State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott called Khan "a small cog in a deeply corrupt system" and said, "His departure is good but does not affect US plans to dismantle the ICC" [9, 10, 3, 7, 8]. Secretary of State Marco Rubio added, "There are lunatics and crazies involved in the ICC and no US political or military officials will ever be tried there" [10].
The allegations against Khan first surfaced in May 2024, triggering an internal ICC investigation involving both the Independent Oversight Mechanism and the United Nations Internal Oversight Services. More than a year of inquiries followed, including in October 2024 when the UN body formally took part in the investigation [1, 6, 8].
The ICC prosecutor's office will continue its work under deputy prosecutors Nazhat Shameen Khan and Mame Mandiaye Niang following Karim Khan's removal [11, 5]. Despite recent controversies and withdrawals by countries such as Chad, Venezuela, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, the court continues ongoing investigations and prosecutions of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide [11, 5].
On July 27, 2026, the ICC began efforts to find a new chief prosecutor amid political pressures and member state withdrawals [11].
