Karim Khan, lawyer experienced in international cases next prosecutor general at the ICC

Elected as the next Attorney General at the International Criminal Court (ICC), British lawyer Karim Khan has forged a solid reputation in 28 years at the bar in international courts, intervening on all sides of the courtroom.

Aged 50, he will succeed on June 16 the Gambian Fatou Bensouda, who has led controversial investigations, in particular on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict or Afghanistan.

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A lawyer since 1992, he has intervened on the defense side in numerous trials before the ICC, in particular for the son of the former Libyan leader Muammar Kadhafi, Seif al-Islam.

A human rights specialist, Karim Khan is currently Under Secretary-General of the United Nations, where he has been responsible for leading the special UN investigation into the crimes of the jihadist group Islamic State.

During this investigation he called for trials similar to that of the Nazi leaders in Nuremberg.

The world must "

demystify

" the ideology of ISIS, he told AFP in July 2019, believing that "

Iraq and Humanity need their Nuremberg

".

In its report evaluating the finalists last November, the ICC commission put forward its "

clear vision

" of the changes the institution needs and described Karim Khan as a "

charismatic communicator well aware of what he has. accomplished

”.

After studying at a private English school and then at King's College London, he began his career as a representative of the prosecution before the British justice.

Karim Khan made his debut in international courts from 1997, as legal adviser to the prosecutors' office of the United Nations international tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda.

"Do a work of justice"

Then from the prosecution he moved on to the defense, where he represented, among other things, the Kenyan vice-president William Ruto before the ICC, against which the prosecution was finally dropped in 2016, amid suspicion of witness tampering.

Even today, NGOs reproach him for his silence after the disappearance of a key defense witness in this case in 2014. In response, he recently in an open letter assured that he had done everything possible to ensure that this witness be protected and that all light be shed on this matter.

"

In almost 30 years at the bar, my professional behavior and my ethics have never been questioned or criticized by any judge, in any court in any jurisdiction,

" he defended himself, denouncing an attack in the process of the election of the head of prosecution at the ICC.

Karim Khan also intervened on the side of the civil parties in Cambodia for the victims in the trial of the torturer of the Khmer Rouge regime "

Douch

", but also in cases in Albania and Kenya.

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In defense, Karim Khan intervened at the Special Tribunal for Lebanon based in The Hague, created to bring to justice the assassins of ex-Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri in 2005 and for ex-Liberian President Charles Taylor in court. special for Sierra Leone.

During this trial, leaving the courtroom when Charles Taylor refused to appear because he considered himself deprived of the right to a fair trial, in 2007, the lawyer was accused by the president of "

bordering on contempt of the Court

”.

For Carsten Stahn, professor of international criminal law at the Dutch University of Leiden, Karim Khan is "

one of the most experienced and successful lawyers, combining courage and vision

".

"

The fact that he has defended both leading defendants and victims, that he has represented the prosecution, offers him a unique place to meet the challenges that lie ahead,

" he added. the teacher, who had interviewed him in 2015 in front of the university students.

"

Its strategic approach, its experience in the courtrooms

" will only "

strengthen the quality of investigations and procedures

", a crucial issue for the success of the ICC in the coming decade, underlines the academic.

During his speech, Karim Khan had pleaded in front of the students that, more than the desire to prosecute or defend, it is that of "

doing work of justice

" which must prevail.