The Lebanese judge Nawaf Salam was elected President of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for a three-year term by his fellow judges.
The ICJ’s official Twitter account announced the election, stating that Salam’s colleagues on the court had elected him president.
Judge Nawaf Salam is a Lebanese jurist and diplomat, who served as Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Lebanon to the United Nations from 2007 to 2017. He was elected to the ICJ in 2017 and is the first Lebanese national to serve as President of the ICJ.
Salam took to Twitter to express his gratitude, saying: “My election as President of the International Court of Justice is a great responsibility in achieving international justice and upholding international law. The first thing that comes to mind at this moment is my constant concern that my city, Beirut, will return to being the ‘Mother of Laws’, as it is known, and that we, as Lebanese, will succeed in establishing a state of law in our country and that justice will prevail among its people.”
It is noteworthy that last month, the ICJ, acting on a lawsuit filed by South Africa, ordered the Israeli entity to take measures to prevent the occurrence of genocide against the Palestinians and to improve the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip. However, the decision did not include a provision for a ceasefire.
Salam’s election as President of the ICJ is a significant achievement for Lebanon and for the Arab world. It is a testament to his distinguished career as a jurist and diplomat, and to his commitment to the principles of international justice and the rule of law.
