The International Court of Justice, also known as the World Court, on Monday said Judge Yuji Iwasawa had been elected as its new president to complete former president Nawaf Salam’s term that ends on February 5, 2027.
Iwasawa will replace Nawaf Salam, Lebanon’s new prime minister.
He has been a Member of the Court since 22 June 2018. Before joining the Court, Iwasawa was Professor of International Law at the University of Tokyo and Chairperson of the United Nations Human Rights Committee.
The 70-year-old will head the Hague-based court until Salam’s term was due to expire on February 5, 2027, the ICJ said in a statement.
The court is weighing on a case brought by South Africa that Israel is committing genocide in its war on Gaza.
The decision settles speculations that Ugandan judge Julia Sebutinde, who defended Israel against accusations of genocide in Gaza, will assume the presidency of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). She was one of only two judges, alongside Israeli appointee Aharon Barak, to vote against an ICJ directive calling on Israel to immediately halt its military operations in Gaza.
In the court’s ruling on 26 January, 2024, which included six precautionary measures approved by 15 judges against two dissenting votes. Sebutinde opposed all measures, including provisions urging Israel to allow the unrestricted flow of humanitarian aid. Barak approved two measures: one obligating Israel to prevent incitement to genocide and another ensuring the flow of humanitarian aid.
In July, the ICJ ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories since the 1967 Middle East war and its settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem were illegal and that it must withdraw as soon as possible.
