Former UN oversight chief says ICC prosecutor Karim Khan is ‘victim of massive stitch-up’

Former UN oversight chief says ICC prosecutor Karim Khan is ‘victim of massive stitch-up’ Submitted by Sondos Asem on Mon, 07/20/2026 - 13:23 Ben Swanson accuses court's executive body of pursuing an 'activist agenda' and 'dystopian' notion of justice by disregarding judicial opinion in prosecutor's misconduct case This general view shows the exterior and the logo of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague on 28 March 2026 (John Thys/AFP) Off A former United Nations investigations chief has accused the International Criminal Court’s executive body of subjecting Prosecutor Karim Khan to a “stitch-up” in their decision to suspend him from office over misconduct allegations. Ben Swanson is a former UN assistant secretary-general and deputy head of the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), and has previously served as director of the OIOS Investigations Division. Over the past year, he has submitted four expert's opinions commissioned by Khan's legal team to the 21-member bureau of the Assembly of States Parties (ASP), criticising the manner in which the investigation into misconduct allegations facing the prosecutor was conducted, and the subsequent handling of the process by the bureau.