THE HAGUE: The International Criminal Court (ICC) said on Wednesday that Israel had demanded the disqualification of its top prosecutor and the cancellation of arrest warrants against top Israeli officials over the Gaza war. Israel had accused prosecutor Karim Khan on Monday of wanting to &quot;divert public attention&quot; from allegations over his behavior by requesting arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant, and accusing the pair of complicity in war crimes committed by Israel in the Palestinian territory. Khan is currently on leave pending an investigation into accusations of sexual misconduct, which he has denied. &quot;The State of Israel submitted today (Monday) to the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) a request to disqualify the Court&#39;s Prosecutor, Mr. Karim Khan, from involvement in proceedings concerning Israel,&quot; Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Oren Marmorstein posted on X. Marmorstein accused Khan of &quot;improper personal motives to advance false and unfounded allegations against Israel,&quot; including by advancing &quot;baseless and outrageous warrants.&quot; &quot;These actions were intended to divert public attention from severe accusations against him of serial sexual harassment of a subordinate employee,&quot; the spokesperson alleged. On its website, the Hague-based court published a document confirming it had received a &quot;Request to Disqualify the Prosecutor and for Ancillary Remedies,&quot; without offering any clarification. According to various media reports, Khan was accused of inappropriate sexual behavior toward a woman who worked at his office. Last year, Khan asked the ICC to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant, and three senior Hamas officials. Despite Israel appealing to the court, the warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant were granted and remain outstanding. The court is also currently examining an Israeli challenge to its competence.

Middle East

Khan has asked the ICC to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant and three senior Hamas officials; despite Israel appealing to the court, the warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant were granted and remain outstanding.

ICC says Israel wants prosecutor disqualified

Web Desk

<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">THE HAGUE: The International Criminal Court&rsquo;s Office of the Prosecutor on Tuesday expressed deep concern over reports of mass killings, rapes, and other crimes allegedly committed during recent attacks by the Rapid Support Forces in El-Fasher, North Darfur.<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In a statement, the ICC Prosecutor&rsquo;s Office said the alleged atrocities form part of a wider pattern of violence that has plagued the Darfur region since April 2023. If confirmed, these acts may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity under the Rome Statute, the statement said.<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Office recalled that &ldquo;under UN Security Council Resolution 1593 (2005), the ICC has jurisdiction over crimes being committed in the ongoing conflict in Darfur.&rdquo; It said investigations are ongoing &ldquo;into crimes allegedly committed in Darfur since the outbreak of hostilities in April 2023.&rdquo;<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">According to the statement, &ldquo;the Office is working intensively, including through repeated field deployments, deepened engagement with victim groups and civil society, and enhanced cooperation with national authorities and international organisations.&rdquo;<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Based on recent reports from El-Fasher, &ldquo;immediate steps are being taken to preserve and collect relevant evidence for its use in future prosecutions, the Prosecutor&rsquo;s Office said.&rdquo;<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It added that &ldquo;the recent conviction by ICC judges of Janjaweed leader Mr Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman (also known as Ali Kushayb) for similar crimes committed in Darfur in 2004 is a warning for all parties to the conflict in Darfur that there will be accountability for such atrocious crimes.&rdquo;<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ICC called on &ldquo;all individuals and organisations engaged in the pursuit of justice and accountability to submit, through the secure OTP Link platform, any information or evidence related to recent and prior events in El-Fasher.&rdquo;

Africa

The International Criminal Court expressed deep concern over reports of mass killings and abuse in Sudan’s El-Fasher, warning that the alleged atrocities by Rapid Support Forces may constitute war crimes.

Articles tagged with "International criminal court"

ICC says Israel wants prosecutor disqualified

Atrocities in Sudan could constitute war crimes, ICC says