ICC’s Khan: Forensic investigator now facing misconduct probe

THE HAGUE: Karim Khan´s job as chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court requires a scrupulous and meticulous examination of evidence to bring cases against alleged perpetrators of the world´s worst crimes.

Now the 54-year-British lawyer faces his own probe, into allegations of misconduct reportedly against a member of his own office, that he firmly denies. When Khan was sworn in as chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, he said the court should be judged by its acts -- “the proof of the pudding should be in the eating.”

And by seeking arrest warrants for Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and senior Hamas figures, Khan has shown he is not afraid to take on the world´s most controversial cases.

The application followed an arrest warrant issued last year for President Vladimir Putin of Russia, which promptly slapped arrest warrants on Khan himself. But Khan has faced down controversy throughout a career that has included stints defending Liberia´s former president Charles Taylor against allegations of war crimes in Sierra Leone.

Other high-profile clients have included Kenya´s President William Ruto in a crimes-against-humanity case at the ICC that was eventually dropped, and the son of late Libyan leader Moamer Qadhafi, Seif al-Islam. Asked about “crossing the floor” -- working as both prosecutor and defence -- Khan told specialist publication OpinioJuris that it helps lawyers stay “grounded.”