International Reporter, Daily Dawn, Dawn TV Report
The Hague: Appeals judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) have disqualified Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor in the war crimes trial against former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, due to a potential conflict of interest.
The decision is another major setback for Karim Khan, who had previously stepped down from his post in May amid a United Nations investigation into alleged sexual abuse allegations.
He has now also been barred from participating in Duterte’s trial. The case was the court’s only active major case, which is already under US sanctions.
In August, Duterte’s lawyers filed a motion to disqualify Karim Khan, arguing that he could not conduct an impartial investigation into the case because he had previously been involved in the impeachment of Duterte as a representative of the Philippine Human Rights Commission.
Karim Khan had filed a motion to dismiss the objection, but on October 2, the Appeals Chamber granted the defense’s request, saying that Karim Khan’s past role called into question his impartiality and that he should be removed from the case.
The ICC prosecutor’s office, on the other hand, has not yet commented on the decision.
Duterte, who was president from 2016 to 2022, was arrested in March and transferred to The Hague. He is accused of ordering the extrajudicial killings of thousands of people during the “drug war.” His lawyers say his arrest is illegal and amounts to “kidnapping.”
The case is now being handled by Deputy Prosecutor Mama Ndiaye Niang, who is himself facing sanctions imposed by Washington over his investigation into war crimes against Israel.
In November last year, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas leader Ibrahim al-Masri. The case against them was fought by Karim Khan.
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