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Khan removed by vote
The International Criminal Court’s member states voted on Friday to remove chief prosecutor Karim Khan, with 82 of 125 member states backing the decision in a secret ballot at UN headquarters in New York.
The ICC stated that “Khan committed serious misconduct and violated his official duties,” while Khan’s team argued the investigation process had “serious procedural flaws,” because Khan was not given sufficient opportunity to present a defense.
Khan had been suspended from his duties in June, and the ICC’s two deputy prosecutors oversaw the Office of the Prosecutor in his absence.
The dismissal followed allegations of sexual misconduct involving a staff member, which Khan repeatedly denied, and the vote came after an investigation and recommendation by the ICC’s executive body.
The removal of Khan did not cancel ongoing investigations or arrest warrants issued by the ICC, which can be withdrawn or altered only by ICC judges.
Netanyahu calls it bias
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed Karim Khan’s dismissal, saying he was “removed by a vast majority of nations” and describing the decision as “a very positive development.”
Netanyahu alleged Khan sought arrest warrants against him and former defense minister Yoav Gallant to “divert attention” from misconduct allegations, and he said “That shield has now been torn away.”
Netanyahu also linked the accusations to ICC arrest warrants issued in 2024, saying Khan “accelerated this procedure” to divert attention from allegations against him.
In a separate account, Netanyahu wrote on X that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told him Washington was “determined to act forcefully” against the ICC after Khan’s removal.
Netanyahu further attacked the ICC as “an institution that undermines justice, attacks democratic and sovereign nations,” according to Middle East Eye’s reporting of his remarks.
Mamdani, travel, and appeal
Netanyahu also criticized New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, saying Mamdani was “fomenting hate” by calling the prime minister a war criminal who should be arrested if he visits the city for the United Nations General Assembly.
Netanyahu said he intends to be in New York in September to address the annual U.N. gathering, despite Mamdani’s suggestion that he is not welcome, and he dismissed the ICC’s war crimes charges against him as “bogus.”
The Standard reported Netanyahu said Khan’s dismissal showed Mamdani was pursuing “bogus charges,” while Netanyahu also accused the mayor of “fomenting hate” against Jews.
Khan’s lawyer, Tayab Ali, said Khan will challenge the removal “through all available legal mechanisms,” after the vote that removed him for “serious misconduct and a serious breach of duty.”
The Standard added that Khan’s dismissal has complicated Netanyahu’s travels to countries that are members of the Hague-based ICC.
