By Anthony Deutsch
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands, March 26 (Reuters) – Allegations of sexual misconduct against the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court are still under review by the court’s executive branch, an internal memo shared with staff on Sunday and seen by Reuters said.
ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan, who investigates war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, has stepped aside temporarily pending an investigation into accusations of a non-consensual sexual relationship with a lawyer in his office. He rejects allegations of wrongdoing.
Khan’s lawyers said in a response after Reuters published its report on Sunday that the ICC’s governing body was due to meet to consider the advice and conclusions of an outside panel of judges, which has not been made public.
No decision was taken at that meeting on Monday, two sources with direct knowledge told Reuters.
“The judges produced a lengthy, reasoned analysis, unanimously concluding that the factual findings do not establish misconduct or breach of duty. What remains is for the politicians in the Bureau to confirm the assessment of the Panel,” the lawyers for Khan wrote in an email.
The President of the Assembly of States Parties (ASP), the ICC’s executive branch, confirmed in a statement on Monday: “The disciplinary process before the Bureau is ongoing and remains confidential. No decisions have been taken, and no weight should be given to or conclusions drawn from media speculations”.
“The matters are complex, and the Bureau is working diligently to make its decision in a proper manner and without delay with full respect for the due process rights and privacy of all persons affected,” it added.
The court did not respond to an email seeking comment.
A news report in the Middle East Eye on Saturday said Khan had been cleared by the panel of judges.
“Middle East Eye reported accurately that the panel of judges had concluded in their report that they had not established any case of misconduct or breach of duty against Karim Khan based on their review” of a report on Khan’s case by the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) and its underlying evidence, a spokesperson for the publication said.
After a year-long investigation, the UN office submitted its confidential fact-finding report to the ASP in December.
NO DECISIONS TAKEN
The sexual misconduct investigation into Khan coincided with U.S. sanctions against him and other court prosecutors and judges for their role in investigating allegations of Israeli war crimes in Gaza, which led to the indictment of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The ICC is the world’s court of last resort for international crimes, and has 125 member countries. It has been thrust into an existential crisis by the sanctions and loss of the prosecutor, who is its most prominent official.
Its membership does not include China, Russia or the United States, which have opposed Khan’s issuing of arrest warrants for sitting leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Netanyahu.
(Reporting by Anthony Deutsch; Editing by Alexander Smith)
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