Russia sentences ICC judges, prosecutor over Putin arrest warrant

MOSCOW — Russia on Friday sentenced top International Criminal Court (ICC) judges and its chief prosecutor to jail terms, in a retaliatory move after the court issued an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin over the Ukraine war.

In 2023, prosecutor Karim Khan charged Putin with illegally deporting children from Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine. Moscow responded by opening a case against him.

The Moscow city court found that “ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan unlawfully prosecuted Russian citizens in The Hague” and that the ICC “instructed the judges of the chamber to issue patently unlawful arrest warrants.”

Russia is not a member of the ICC, and none of the defendants were present in court.

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Khan, 55, was sentenced to 15 years in jail in absentia, while eight ICC staff, including the former court president Piotr Hofmanski, received prison terms ranging from 3.5 to 15 years.

Khan is currently suspended from duties over an internal probe following sexual misconduct allegations, which he denies.

Since sending troops to Ukraine, Russia has issued numerous sentences in absentia to dissidents, journalists, opposition, and foreign politicians outside of its reach.

Khan has also been sanctioned by the United States over ICC investigations into US and Israeli officials. Neither the United States nor Israel are among the court’s 125 members.