The International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor has been suspended with immediate effect after the court’s governing body referred disciplinary proceedings against him to member states following a sexual misconduct investigation.

The ICC, based in The Hague, is a permanent international court created under the Rome Statute to prosecute individuals accused of genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and the crime of aggression when national courts are unable or unwilling to act. 

Khan became one of the world’s most controversial prosecutors after seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, making his suspension a major development well beyond the court itself. Israel and the United States have rejected the International Criminal Court’s jurisdiction, and neither country is a member of the court.

The Bureau of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute had decided to refer the disciplinary proceedings against Prosecutor Karim Khan to the full Assembly of States Parties, suspend him from duty pending a final decision and convene a special session to consider the matter, the International Criminal Court’s Presidency said in a Tuesday statement. 

ICC PROSECUTOR BEHIND NETANYAHU ARREST WARRANTS STEPS ASIDE AMID SEXUAL MISCONDUCT PROBE

«The Court respectfully invites the Assembly of the State Parties to conclude the process with the highest priority,» the court’s presidency said. 

Khan, who has denied wrongdoing, led the court’s controversial push for arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.

Khan’s suspension followed an 18-month investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct involving a lawyer in his office. 

Khan’s lawyers have denied the allegations and called the decision «unlawful, procedurally unfair and unsupported by evidence.» 

The findings have moved through several layers of review. 

A U.N. Office of Internal Oversight Services investigation found evidence supporting the allegations, while a separate judicial review found the evidence was not enough to prove misconduct beyond a reasonable doubt, Reuters reported. The Assembly of States Parties Bureau, which oversees the court on behalf of member states, nevertheless found that Khan had committed serious misconduct involving nonconsensual sexual activity and recommended his removal, Reuters reported.

The disciplinary probe found Khan had engaged in «serious misconduct» and a «serious breach of duty,» The Associated Press reported. 

The case now goes to a special session of the Assembly of States Parties, the International Criminal Court’s 125 member governing body. The final decision lies with the assembly and a date for the special session has not yet been set.

Liz Evenson, international justice director at Human Rights Watch, told Fox News Digital that, «The fact that states parties appear to be taking this seriously is important but the decision is confidential so we can’t comment on it. We will be monitoring next steps closely. Meanwhile, state parties should continue to support the court in its important work across its docket.»

CHIEF PROSECUTOR BEHIND ISRAEL WAR CRIMES CHARGES FACES DISCIPLINARY ACTION AMID SEXUAL MISCONDUCT ALLEGATIONS

Karim Khan was the ICC’s chief prosecutor. (Getty Images)

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant in November 2024 after Khan requested them months earlier. Israel and the United States condemned the move, accusing the court of equating Israeli leaders with Hamas terrorists. 

The Trump administration sanctioned Khan in February 2025 over the court’s actions targeting Israeli officials, under an executive order targeting ICC officials involved in actions against the U.S. or its allies. The order authorized asset freezes and U.S. entry restrictions, and Treasury later added Khan to its sanctions list.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz told Fox News Digital that the U.S. position on the International Criminal Court «has never wavered.»

«We oppose any overreach by the ICC against the United States or our allies. Period,» Waltz said. «And we expect our partners to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with us against these outrageous actions.»

Waltz said the U.S. is watching the disciplinary proceedings against Khan, while declining to comment on the specifics of the case.

«As for the situation with Prosecutor Karim Khan, this is a bit rich that this prosecutor sought to jail a democratically elected prime minister and now we are tracking his immediate suspension and the ongoing disciplinary proceedings,» Waltz said. «Of course, we aren’t going to comment on the specifics of that case while it plays out.»

The suspension drew immediate reaction from Israeli officials, who argued that the decision further undermines the court’s case against Netanyahu and Gallant.

«Want to divert attention from sex crime accusations? Just make up war crime accusations against Israel! Classic,» Netanyahu wrote Wednesday on X. «The ICC is corrupt to the core.»

TRUMP, CONGRESS LOOKING TO PUT SUFFOCATING SANCTIONS ON ‘KANGAROO’ ICC OVER NETANYAHU ARREST WARRANT

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant overseeing meeting at Israel’s Ministry of Defense following the IDF’s preemptive strikes against Hezbollah, August 25th. (Israel Government Press Office)

Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, told Fox News Digital that Khan’s suspension proves the International Criminal Court’s problems go beyond one prosecutor.

«The International Criminal Court’s decision to immediately suspend the Chief Prosecutor in The Hague, Karim Khan, following the UN investigation, proves that this body is rotten to the core,» Danon said. «Now is the time to cancel the absurd indictments against Prime Minister Netanyahu!»

Anne Bayefsky, president of Human Rights Voices and director of the Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust, told Fox News Digital that the scandal has damaged the credibility of the entire court.

«The astounding story of the world’s International Criminal Court and its lead prosecutor headed by a criminal, an alleged rapist, is not just about one rotten apple,» Bayefsky said. «The entire ICC machine let the process to hold Khan to account drag on for two years after his crimes were first reported.»

Bayefsky argued that the court’s actions against Israeli officials should now face renewed scrutiny.

US ANNOUNCES MORE SANCTIONS ON ICC OFFICIALS FOR TARGETING AMERICANS, ISRAELIS

The International Criminal Court building stands in The Hague, Netherlands, on April 30, 2024. (Selman Aksunger/Anadolu via Getty Images)

«ICC judges decided that Khan’s efforts to criminalize Israel’s Prime Minister and Defense Minister weren’t tainted by the clear evidence that Khan was trying desperately to use his attack on Israelis to save himself,» Bayefsky said. «Khan has taken the credibility of the whole shameful ICC apparatus down with him.»

The Presidency said the court’s leadership remains committed to «independent and impartial proceedings,» recognition and redress for victims of mass atrocities, and the «dignity, rights and aspirations» of court personnel.

The statement also sought to defend the institution itself, calling the ICC «one of the most significant achievements of human civilisation» and saying the court has a duty to protect «the proper functioning of the Court as a whole and its reputation,» the integrity of judicial proceedings, the rights of victims and suspects, and the well-being of court staff.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Flag with the logo of the of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on March 29, 2022, in Den Haag, Netherlands.  (Alex Gottschalk/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)

The court did not say whether Khan’s suspension would affect the cases involving Netanyahu and Gallant. 

Fox News Digital has reached out to the International Criminal Court for comment.

Rep. Jasmine Crockett erupted at Republicans, calling them a «majority… White» party and accusing them of using a member of Martin Luther King Jr.’s family as a prop to shield themselves from allegations of racism while interrogating the Southern Poverty Law Center’s funding of hate groups.

Crockett, who is leaving office next year after a failed Senate bid, lambasted Republicans for expressing outrage at the SPLC while not addressing the «literal elephant in the room» — a reference to Martin Luther King Jr.’s more conservative niece, Alveda King.

Crockett disparaged civil rights activist Alveda King as a right-wing prop while accusing Republicans of trying to trick the public into thinking a «Doctor King» was criticizing the SPLC’s work. King later questioned whether Crockett was calling her a «bastard» of the King name.

«The vast majority on that side of the aisle… are White men. White men are lecturing people of color because the vast majority, actually any semblance of diversity comes from this [Democratic] side of the aisle,» Crockett said.

FIRST ON FOX: SPLC’S TAX-EXEMPT STATUS UNDER THREAT AFTER FIERY CAPITOL HILL HEARING

She said people of color don’t feel welcome in the GOP and «that’s why you have to parade someone who has the name ‘Doctor King’ attached to them so people can be confused.»

Notably, GOP Rep. Wesley Hunt, a fellow Black Texan, was on the committee’s dais and pointedly questioned SPLC leader Bryan Fair earlier in the day. Hunt often rebukes talk of race-based partisanship by quipping that he has been «Black my entire life.»

Crockett said Republicans were hypocritical in accusing the SPLC of funding hate groups, citing a debunked assertion about President Donald Trump’s comments following the 2017 White supremacist rally in Charlottesville.

She noted Trump had said there were «fine people on both sides,» but omitted that he later clarified he was referring to a community group opposing the removal of Gen. Robert E. Lee’s statue, a gathering that occurred before the neo-Nazi violence erupted later that day.

Crockett then claimed people on social media were wondering who the «Doctor King» was who was speaking out against the SPLC as the hearing progressed, and that Republicans were trying to make the public think the historic Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. would be on their side.

NEARLY ALL SUSPECTS ARRESTED IN ST. PAUL CHURCH STORMING AS MLK’S NIECE SAYS TACTICS ‘NOT THE WAY’

Crockett said Republicans would be better served calling the Obama-supporting Martin Luther King III or his sister Bernice King to the hearing — suggesting they understand the civil rights icon’s teachings and positions better than Alveda.

Before her time expired, she accused King and Republicans of «caping» for murdered activist Charlie Kirk — quoting a controversial statement by the Turning Point USA founder about the Civil Rights Act.

She also claimed Republicans hauled Fair and King before the committee because they wanted to distract from their failure to hold a hearing examining associates of deceased financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

When House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, gaveled-out Crockett’s time and passed the floor to Rep. Russell Fry, R-S.C., the Republican gave King a chance to respond.

«I am a bit emotional,» King said of what Crockett had claimed. «I’m going to watch what I say.»

Crockett did not appear to look back at Alveda King and was briefly seen closing her notebook as she prepared to stand up.

JASMINE CROCKETT’S HISTORY OF PLAYING THE RACE CARD GOING AFTER CONSERVATIVE AND LIBERAL CRITICS

President Donald Trump listens to Dr. Alveda King, niece of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., during a meeting with inner city pastors at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 1, 2018. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)

«It seems as though you (Crockett) have suggested that I am bastard to the King family legacy. I am legitimately the daughter of Reverend Alfred Daniel Williams King and Dr. Naomi Ruth Barber King,» Alveda King said.

Rev. A.D. King was Martin Luther King Jr.’s brother.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

«We are a family who loves God. And I love you, God bless you,» King said before yielding back to Fry.

Fry then announced that, off-camera, Crockett had quickly left the room before King could substantively respond to her remarks.

U.K. surveillance laws drew scrutiny from House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio June 5 amid warnings they could expose communications of officials and American citizens, according to reports.

The concern centered on the U.K.’s use of secret Technical Capability Notices under the Investigatory Powers Act, which critics say could make U.S. companies weaken encryption or create «backdoors» weaken encryption or create «backdoors» while preventing firms from disclosing requests without U.K. government approval.

Critics have argued this could undermine privacy, create vulnerabilities and limit congressional oversight with one former intelligence official warning of a «standing invitation to Beijing.»

«We have already seen how this ends,» former Department of Defense official Andrew Badger told Fox News Digital.

JD VANCE ‘DIRECTLY’ CONVINCED UK TO DROP APPLE BACKDOOR DATA DEMAND, PROTECTING AMERICANS’ RIGHTS: US OFFICIAL

«There are legitimate privacy concerns here, and those have been well aired. The less examined issue is national security,» Badger said.

«A backdoor compelled by one ally becomes a standing invitation to Beijing, Moscow and Tehran so once one government can quietly compel access, others will demand the same, and a one-off concession hardens into a permanent vulnerability,» he warned.

According to the Telegraph, a June 5 letter sent by Jordan to U.K. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, showed the Trump ally had called for a review.

The report said Mahmood’s decision had been to deny a U.S. company permission to speak with Congress about an alleged encryption backdoor notice.

Jordan was also said to have warned that a lack of bilateral coordination raised concerns about the «trust and effective partnership between our two countries.»

«Five Eyes works because every partner trusts the others not to weaken the systems they all depend on,» Badger, co-author of «The Great Heist: China’s Epic Campaign to Steal America’s Secrets,» said.

«If Washington also concludes that U.K. surveillance powers could inadvertently expose Americans and American officials to espionage, it puts real strain on the relationship and makes future cooperation on intelligence and cyber harder to sustain.»

US SPIES URGED TO REFOCUS EFFORTS ON AMERICA’S BACKYARD, NEW HOUSE INTEL CHAIR SAYS

The Thames House headquarters of MI5 in London on Nov. 18, 2025. Britain’s domestic security service has warned of growing state-backed threats, including more than 20 Iran-backed plots uncovered in the UK, as lawmakers consider new legislation targeting foreign state-linked groups. (Betty Laura Zapata/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

On the encryption issue, Badger noted that mainstream encrypted platforms now function as «de facto infrastructure for sensitive communication well beyond the consumer market.»

«Any access point built into them becomes a permanent target. It is not a private key the requesting government gets to keep to itself,» he said.

U.S. and British cyber officials have also repeatedly warned that an axis of hostile states — including Russia, China and Iran — poses threats to Western security and infrastructure.

As previously reported by Fox News Digital, cyberespionage by groups such as Salt Typhoon, linked to China, has carried out operations targeting sensitive communications.

«China is actively running one of the largest state-backed cyberespionage operations ever uncovered. The Salt Typhoon campaign has targeted hundreds of organizations across roughly 80 countries and, through those intrusions, gained access to sensitive communications and networks used by senior Western officials,» Badger warned.

«Chinese state hackers didn’t defeat encryption. They walked straight through the lawful-intercept systems telecom providers had built, reaching the communications of senior officials and even information about surveillance targets.»

CHINESE BIOWEAPON SMUGGLING CASE SHOWS US ‘TRAINS OUR ENEMIES,’ ‘LEARNED NOTHING’ FROM COVID: SECURITY EXPERT

The flag of China is flown behind a pair of surveillance cameras outside the Central Government Offices. (Roy Liu/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Reports also surfaced that U.K. Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper used a burner phone during a recent trip to Beijing and raising further concerns about state-sponsored espionage.

Badger noted that the episode reflects a broader pattern of Chinese targeting of British democratic institutions, including the «hacking of senior Downing Street officials’ phones and an Electoral Commission breach that exposed the data of roughly 40 million voters,» he said.

«The telling thing is that no one issues burner phones for a trip to Sweden or Germany,» he said.

«The precaution is itself an admission of the threat environment. The working assumption — correctly — is that anything digital taken into China should be treated as potentially compromised.»

The systemic vulnerability also highlights a fundamental contradiction in Western diplomatic strategy, according to Badger.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

«This case perfectly underscores the contradiction at the heart of the U.K. Labour government’s China policy: chasing positive economic relations and expanded trade with Beijing on one hand, while being forced to take elaborate precautions against a state whose core interests remain fundamentally at odds with its own on the other,» Badger said.

«You can’t simultaneously treat China as a trusted economic partner and a hostile intelligence threat. It’s a fundamental contradiction. The need to use burner phones symbolically underscore this.»