BELGIUM PERSPECTIVE
INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT REMOVES CHIEF PROSECUTOR KARIM KHAN AMID MISCONDUCT ALLEGATIONS
DOMINANT ANGLE
Brussels is concerned about an International Criminal Court that "is self-destructing," according to a former Belgian magistrate, even though a Belgian judge had previously cleared Karim Khan.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
ANALYSIS
Brussels, July 25, 2026. The vote was held behind closed doors on Friday evening at the UN headquarters in New York: 82 of the 125 member states of the International Criminal Court (ICC) voted to revoke the mandate of Prosecutor General Karim Khan, while 63 votes were sufficient. Only 13 states voted to maintain his position. In Belgium, the decision has revived a deep unease, fueled by the role a Belgian magistrate played in this explosive case.
Judge Paul Lemmens indeed sat on the independent panel of three judges tasked with examining the 5,000-page investigation report on the allegations of sexual assault against Karim Khan, brought by a colleague in June 2024. According to the Flemish public broadcaster VRT, the panel unanimously concluded that no tangible evidence supported the allegations. Despite this conclusion, the internal and external pressure on the Court ultimately led to the downfall of the British prosecutor, who has been in office since 2021.
A former ICC judge, Belgian Christine Van den Wyngaert, has made the most severe comment. Interviewed by VRT before the vote, she already believed that "the Court is making itself totally incredible," adding that she was watching the situation "with a lot of sadness in her heart: the Court is devouring itself from the inside." This warning, in Belgium, resonates as a disavowal from the judicial establishment.
La Libre Belgique recalls that Karim Khan, 56, had temporarily left his functions in May 2025 before being suspended in June by the Bureau of the Assembly. His lawyers, in an open letter published on X this week, warned that his revocation risked sending a dangerous signal for the independence of future prosecutors, a direct allusion to the most sensitive cases he has handled: the arrest warrants against Vladimir Putin and Benjamin Netanyahu.
On the same day, Venezuela announced its "firm and irreversible" withdrawal from the Rome Statute, while the Court is investigating possible crimes against humanity committed under Nicolas Maduro. For Brussels, long a defender of judicial multilateralism, these two simultaneous announcements paint a picture of a weakened ICC, fragile due to its own internal flaws and the growing distrust of the states it seeks to judge.
KEY POINTS
- Belgium's capital is witnessing a significant development as 82 out of 125 States Parties to the International Criminal Court voted to revoke Karim Khan's position, exceeding the required 63 votes, while only 13 States voted for his retention
- The independent panel of three judges, including Belgian judge Paul Lemmens, reviewed a 5,000-page report and unanimously concluded that there was no evidence against Khan
- Former Belgian International Criminal Court judge Christine Van den Wyngaert states that the Court is "consumed from within" and has become "completely incredulous"
COGNITIVE BIASES IDENTIFIED
Judicially centered framing: strong focus on the role of Belgian judge Paul Lemmens and the verdict of the independent panel, which received little attention in coverage from other countries
Preference for critical Belgian voices (Van den Wyngaert) on the credibility of the Court, over the official positions of states in favor of the vote
Limited coverage of the status of ongoing International Criminal Court (ICC) cases, including the arrest warrants against Vladimir Putin and Benjamin Netanyahu, following Khan's departure
SOURCES (2)
MEDIUM
Accusé d'agression sexuelle, le procureur de la CPI Karim Khan relevé de ses fonctions
Le Venezuela annonce son retrait de la Cour pénale internationale : "Une décision ferme et irrévocable"
Benjamin Netanyahou arrêté lors de l'AG de l'Onu à New York ? "Ce coup politique de Zohran Mamdani met une pression énorme"
Does this analysis seem accurate?
