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Who is the lawyer who confronted Israel at the International Court of Justice...

Who is the lawyer who confronted Israel at the International Court of Justice...

By Omayma othmani

Published: January 12, 2024

Lawyer Adila Hasim, one of the members of the legal team for the State of South Africa, grabbed the spotlight on social media yesterday through her pleading at the International Court of Justice, condemning the occupying entity for committing genocide in the Gaza Strip.

The world's attention was directed yesterday for hours to The Hague, where the court headquarters is located, which hosted the first session of the lawsuit by listening to South Africa, which is the first country to file a lawsuit against the occupying entity.

Smooth speech, eloquence in presenting arguments, and continuity of ideas caught the attention through lawyer Adila Hasim (or Hashim), as she opened her plea by expressing her honor to represent the State of South Africa in this exceptional case that represents the essence of shared humanity, according to her expression.

Lawyer Adila Hashim presented the accusation before the International Court of Justice that the occupier "commits acts of genocide" during its war on the Gaza Strip, saying: "South Africa affirms that Israel violated Article 2 of the convention, through actions that show an organized pattern of behavior from which genocide can be inferred... Palestinians in Gaza are being killed by Israeli weapons and bombs from the air, land, and sea. They are also at risk of direct death due to famine and disease, because of the destruction of Palestinian cities, the limited aid allowed to enter, and the impossibility of distributing aid with bombs falling."

So who is this lawyer chosen by South Africa to plead on its behalf in its case?

Lawyer Adila Hashim was born in 1965 in Durban, Natal Province, South Africa, and obtained a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Natal in Durban.

In the late 1980s, lawyer Adila Hashim won the Franklin Thomas fellowship to study a Master of Laws from Drew University in the United States, which she obtained in 1999. She also founded the "Corruption Watch" in South Africa in the same year to expose government corruption and hold officials accountable.

Also, as a Muslim member of South Africa's team before the "International Court of Justice," she participated in establishing the "Article 27 Centre" for Human Rights Defense in 2001, which is concerned with providing legal support to victims and raising awareness about human rights.

In 2003, she became a member of the South African Bar Association. In 2006, she obtained a doctorate in law from the University of Notre Dame in the United States. Her preferred practice areas include constitutional law, administrative law, and health law, and Adila Hashim has represented throughout her career before various divisions of the South African High Court and Constitutional Court.

She has received numerous awards and honors, including the "Human Rights" award from Amnesty International in 2002, the "Distinguished Woman" award from the South African government in 2005, and the "Law and Justice" award from the Ford Foundation in 2010.

Lawyer Adila Hashim currently holds the position of advisor at Thulamela Chambers. She has participated in a number of legal cases related to social and economic rights.

She has also published articles in many legal and health journals. She participated in editing the journal "Health and Democracy: A Guide to Human Rights, Law, and Health Policy in Post-Apartheid South Africa," with Mark Heywood and Jonathan Berger in 2007.

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