British lawyer Karim Khan in Najaf in central Iraq during his visit to Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani. AFP
British lawyer Karim Khan in Najaf in central Iraq during his visit to Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani. AFP
British lawyer Karim Khan in Najaf in central Iraq during his visit to Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani. AFP
British lawyer Karim Khan in Najaf in central Iraq during his visit to Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani. AFP

UK lawyer leading UN ISIS investigations in Iraq is favourite to be next ICC prosecutor


Nicky Harley
  • English
  • Arabic

A British lawyer investigating ISIS atrocities for the UN is tipped to be the next chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Court.

Karim Khan QC is one of the favourites for the position when elections are held this week.

The process to fill the most important post in the field of international criminal justice was deadlocked for several months.

The successor to Gambia's Fatou Bensouda was supposed to be chosen last year but the court’s 123 member countries were unable to agree on one of the four original names shortlisted.

In November, Mr Khan and four other candidates were added to the shortlist.

For the past few years Mr Khan, 50, led the UN's ISIS war crimes unit investigating genocides by the terrorist group in Iraq.

Last week, his work led to the return of the bodies of loved ones massacred by ISIS to Yazidi relatives. The bodies were recovered from mass graves.

On Monday, the ICC announced it would hold an election this week after failing to come to a unanimous agreement.

Another close contender for the role is Irish lawyer Fergal Gaynor.

Ms Bensouda will complete her nine-year term in June. She is the ICC’s second chief prosecutor and previously served as deputy prosecutor under first chief prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo.

"Bensouda set the table for the next chief prosecutor with quite a few sharp objects," Mark Kersten, an international law expert at the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto, told The Telegraph.

“The biggest challenge to whoever is the next chief prosecutor over the next nine years is to figure out how to ensure that those sharp objects cut the right way.

“Are you going to have a prosecutor who is meek and will kowtow to the West or are you going to get someone who is willing to stand up to major powers and is willing to risk very little co-operation in response?

“Both Khan and Gaynor have traits that could be good for the ICC, both would be willing to stand up to world powers, whether they would end up doing that is another question.”

Last year, the United States imposed sanctions on Ms Bensouda and one of her top aides for investigating the actions of American troops in Afghanistan.

Although former president Donald Trump's administration rejected the court, President Joe Biden is expected to take a less confrontational stance, but Washington is unlikely to lift its objections to the Afghanistan investigation.

Last week, the ICC announced that it had jurisdiction over the occupied Palestinian territories, allowing it to investigate war-crime allegations against Israeli forces, leading Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to label the ruling as "pure anti-Semitism".

The aim of the International Criminal Court is to prosecute and bring to justice those responsible for the worst crimes – genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, and it is a court of last resort, intervening only when national authorities cannot or will not prosecute.

The Perfect Couple

Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor

Creator: Jenna Lamia

Rating: 3/5

The specs

Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors

Power: 480kW

Torque: 850Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)

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Tips to stay safe during hot weather
  • Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
  • Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
  • Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
  • Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
  • Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
  • Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
  • Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
TRAP

Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue

Director: M Night Shyamalan

Rating: 3/5

Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

The alternatives

• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.

• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.

• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.

2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.

• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases -  but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Part three: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How to wear a kandura

Dos

  • Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion 
  • Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
  • Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work 
  • Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester

Don’ts 

  • Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal 
  • Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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F1 The Movie

Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

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The biog

Name: Greg Heinricks

From: Alberta, western Canada

Record fish: 56kg sailfish

Member of: International Game Fish Association

Company: Arabian Divers and Sportfishing Charters

Classification from Tour de France after Stage 17

1. Chris Froome (Britain / Team Sky) 73:27:26"

2. Rigoberto Uran (Colombia / Cannondale-Drapac) 27"

3. Romain Bardet (France / AG2R La Mondiale)

4. Fabio Aru (Italy / Astana Pro Team) 53"

5. Mikel Landa (Spain / Team Sky) 1:24"

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Profile of MoneyFellows

Founder: Ahmed Wadi

Launched: 2016

Employees: 76

Financing stage: Series A ($4 million)

Investors: Partech, Sawari Ventures, 500 Startups, Dubai Angel Investors, Phoenician Fund

CONCRETE COWBOY

Directed by: Ricky Staub

Starring: Idris Elba, Caleb McLaughlin, Jharrel Jerome

3.5/5 stars

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The specs

Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel

Power: 579hp

Torque: 859Nm

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Price: From Dh825,900

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The nine articles of the 50-Year Charter

1. Dubai silk road

2.  A geo-economic map for Dubai

3. First virtual commercial city

4. A central education file for every citizen

5. A doctor to every citizen

6. Free economic and creative zones in universities

7. Self-sufficiency in Dubai homes

8. Co-operative companies in various sectors

­9: Annual growth in philanthropy

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Match info

Bournemouth 0
Liverpool 4
(Salah 25', 48', 76', Cook 68' OG)

Man of the match: Andrew Robertson (Liverpool)

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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs

Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12

Power: 819hp

Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm

Price: From Dh1,700,000

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DMZ facts
  • The DMZ was created as a buffer after the 1950-53 Korean War.
  • It runs 248 kilometers across the Korean Peninsula and is 4km wide.
  • The zone is jointly overseen by the US-led United Nations Command and North Korea.
  • It is littered with an estimated 2 million mines, tank traps, razor wire fences and guard posts.
  • Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un met at a building in Panmunjom, where an armistice was signed to stop the Korean War.
  • Panmunjom is 52km north of the Korean capital Seoul and 147km south of Pyongyang, North Korea’s capital.
  • Former US president Bill Clinton visited Panmunjom in 1993, while Ronald Reagan visited the DMZ in 1983, George W. Bush in 2002 and Barack Obama visited a nearby military camp in 2012. 
  • Mr Trump planned to visit in November 2017, but heavy fog that prevented his helicopter from landing.
While you're here