A former United Nations employee turned out to be involved in a chilling pattern of sexual violence against numerous women. He was sentenced this Thursday to a lengthy prison term after a federal judge in Manhattan concluded a case that spanned years and crossed borders. The sentence given to Karim Elkorany, who is 39 years old, reflects a history of harm that stretched across multiple countries, including Iraq, Egypt, and the United States. The court’s decision, issued by a federal judge in New York, serves as a formal acknowledgment of the scale and persistence of the offenses reported by the United States Department of Justice.
During the trial, the court heard that Elkorany engaged in drugging and coercive sexual acts against a large number of women over nearly two decades. The proceedings highlighted the severity of his conduct and the impact on the victims, who described the fear and pain they endured. The attorney for the government, United States Attorney Damian Williams, emphasized that Elkorany’s actions were not isolated incidents but part of a troubling pattern that harmed many individuals while he carried out his duties in various locations, including his role with the United Nations until his departure in 2018.
In May, Elkorany was found guilty of assault and lying to Federal Bureau of Investigation agents. He also admitted to harassing thirteen women and providing drugs to six more. The victims and their families are in close contact with the Ministry of Justice, and prosecutors argued that the crimes were not fleeting misdeeds but repeated offenses that demonstrated a clear pattern of predatory behavior, a point repeatedly stressed by the prosecutors during sentencing.
UNICEF, while acknowledging the gravity of the case, welcomed the prosecution’s conclusions. The agency said that the violence described should never have occurred and should never have been tolerated. UNICEF also noted that its investigative offices did not receive official complaints about the misconduct during the period in question. The organization explained that the information about the allegations came to light after Elkorany had left his UN post at the end of 2016, and that, since then, UNICEF has cooperated with investigations and provided support to the victims with the resources available at the time.