As the International Criminal Court (ICC) prepares to vote on the fate of chief prosecutor Karim Khan following accusations of sexual misconduct, one of his alleged victims spoke publicly for the first time about the misconduct in an interview with CNN on Thursday.
A Malaysian lawyer identified only by her first name, Sarah, who has worked for the ICC since 2017, told CNN that the alleged sexual misconduct lasted for over a year after she started working as Khan’s assistant in February 2023.
CNN stated that it had obtained a leaked copy of a United Nations investigative report into the allegations against Khan, in which Sarah claimed that Khan had repeatedly sexually harassed her, subjecting her to non-consensual sexual acts such as groping, kissing, and penetration.
In the interview, Sarah asserted that she never wanted to be forced into this position and described feeling “humiliated” by what she stated were escalating attempts at sexual engagement and violations of emotional boundaries from Khan.
Sarah stated that she froze at times and was afraid to reject Khan’s advances for fear of retaliation that could impact her career and her work visa, which allowed her to live in the Netherlands with her husband and son.
“There is no way for something to be consensual when you have such a power disparity,” she told CNN. “What I think many people don’t understand is that Mr. Khan was not just my boss, he was everyone’s boss.”
Sarah stated that even in early interactions with Khan, he behaved in a manner that made her uncomfortable. Khan reportedly continued to escalate to more overt actions, including entering her hotel room late at night and groping her after pressuring her to join him for a “nap.”
CNN stated that the UN investigative report found evidence that showed a “factual basis” for the accusations based on reports from Sarah, her colleagues, and witnesses to the alleged abuse.
The report detailed further claims that Khan non-consensually tried to sexually touch Sarah in Khan’s office, his home, and on business trips.
Sarah also alleged that after colleagues expressed concern over her well-being, she told them about the alleged inappropriate conduct. She then reportedly faced pressure from Khan and another ICC employee to write a letter retracting her allegations.
Khan denies allegations of sexual misconduct
Khan has repeatedly denied the accusations made against him and was suspended from his role in June, after months of investigation into the claims.
Khan previously disputed that he had any relationship with Sarah, reportedly telling UN investigators that he “completely denied engaging in any harassment, abuse of authority, inappropriate behavior whatsoever.”
Sarah denies that her claims were a part of alleged Israeli efforts to discredit Khan
After accusations against Khan first emerged, some speculated that Sarah’s allegations were part of an Israeli effort to discredit Khan, who was in the process of seeking arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant in relation to the Israel-Hamas War.
Sarah denied that she had worked as a “state actor” and, according to the UN report, “multiple credible witnesses dismissed the notion that she was a spy.” One ICC employee reportedly told investigators that the accusations against Sarah were “a load of bull.”
Sarah noted that to work for the ICC, she underwent security clearance investigations, telling CNN that “If ever there was even a hint of suspicion that I was a state agent of any kind, I would have been dismissed.”
“I think many parties have, for their own agenda, conflated the two things,” she told CNN. “That conflation has only helped to distract and deflect from the validity of that complaint.”
