Two women who have accused the chief prosecutor of the international criminal court, Karim Khan, of sexual abuse have spoken out about their claims against the prominent British lawyer.
In an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour on Thursday, an ICC staffer identified by her first name, Sarah, spoke publicly for the first time about her allegations, which have engulfed the court over the past two years.
Sarah, a lawyer who worked directly for Khan, described his behaviour as “an escalation of attempts”. She said “it was kind of like encroachments on the boundaries slowly – not just physically, but emotionally as well”.
She alleged that on one occasion, while on an official visit to Colombia, Khan came into her hotel room. She said that, as she pretended to be asleep, he “started to put his hand down my leggings, to grope me, to put his tongue in my ear”. Khan has denied the allegations.
A second woman – referred to by a pseudonym, Patricia – also spoke to Amanpour, though her face was hidden from view. The woman, who first came forward to the Guardian last year, worked for Khan earlier in his career.
She said that while an intern in 2009 she was required to work at his house. She alleged that “without fail every time I was there it was a constant onslaught of him coming on to me, groping me, grabbing me, kissing my face, touching my hair, trying to get me to engage in intimate activity with him”.
One of Khan’s lawyers, Sareta Ashraph, said the allegations of both women were not new and Khan continues to deny the claims “in their entirety”. Speaking to Amanpour, she said: “The complete evidential picture paints a far different picture than there’s been presented here today.”
The interviews come at a critical juncture for both Khan and the ICC. Next week, the court’s member states will convene at the UN headquarters in New York for an unprecedented vote on whether to remove the prosecutor from office.
Last month, the executive committee of the ICC’s governing body suspended Khan after concluding that he had committed serious misconduct in connection to the sexual abuse claims involving Sarah. It referred the matter to the court’s 125 member states to decide his future.
Lawyers for the chief prosecutor have argued the disciplinary process against him is politically motivated and “procedurally unfair”.
Ashraph said: “This foray into the media comes a week before the vote on 24 July. The evidence that has been presented, the testimony presented is already before the states along with a huge amount of other relevant information that has not been presented on this programme [CNN].”
Khan was elected in 2021 to serve a nine-year term running the court’s prosecution division, which is responsible for investigating and bringing to trial individuals accused of atrocities.
Sarah, who is 39, served as Khan’s direct special assistant between 2023 and 2024. She is from Malaysia and was an ICC staffer for several years before joining Khan’s top team.
The chief prosecutor’s tenure at the court of last resort was thrown into disarray in late 2024 when details of Sarah’s allegations first emerged. Until now, she has remained anonymous.
Khan’s representatives have at times sought to suggest Sarah’s allegations may be part of a plot by hostile actors to discredit him as a consequence for his 2024 decision to seek arrest warrants for the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and his then defence minister.
According to documents seen by the Guardian, the disciplinary process against Khan found there was no evidence to support claims Sarah was “being used by third parties, including intelligence agencies”.
In her interview with Amanpour, Sarah – who is Muslim and remains an ICC employee – said: “If ever there was even a hint of suspicion that I was a state agent of any kind, I would have been dismissed.”
She added: “My complaint was because of what happened to me, not for any other reason.”
