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International Criminal Justice
Serious Concern about Arrest Warrant Issued against the ICC Prosecutor
According to the information received, the Russian government issued last week an arrest warrant for Mr. Karim Khan - the British prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC). Karim Khan is a barrister and King's Counsel with more than 25 years of professional experience as an international criminal law and human rights lawyer. He has served as the ICC prosecutor since 2021.
In March 2023, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Mr. Vladimir Putin and Russia’s commissioner for children’s rights, Ms Maria Lvova-Belova, on war crimes charges related to the abduction of Ukrainian children. Mr. Khan played a vital role in the arrest warrant against Putin.
The UIA-IROL is deeply concerned about the situation which seems to be an attempt to undermine the mandate of the International Criminal Court to investigate, sanction and prevent the commission of the gravest crimes of concern to the international community.
The UIA-IROL recalls its statement denouncing the sanctions against the ICC Prosecutor by the U.S. government as an unacceptable attempt to interfere with the rule of law and the ICC functioning [1]. The UIA-IROL stands with the many nations and international organisations that support the ICC and its work, and stand by the ICC Prosecutor in ensuring that the ICC continues to function without fear or favour.
We will closely monitor the case and investigate the details.
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