The top UN courts elected a Japanese judge as the new president to replace Nawafsalam, who resigned from the Post in January to become Lebanon’s prime minister.
In a statement released Monday, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) said Judge Iwasawa will lead the Hague-based court until February 5, 2027, when Salam’s term expires.
Iwasaki has been a member of ICJ since June 2018. Prior to joining the 15-Judge Court, he was a professor of international law at the University of Tokyo and chaired the United Nations Human Rights Committee.
The 70-year-old judge is the second Japanese to envision the ICJ presidency after Hisashi Owada, who served as the court chief from 2009 to 2012.
Salam, who began his role as ICJ head in February 2024, has officially resigned after being appointed Prime Minister of Lebanon by President Joseph Owns.
Israeli Judge Julia Cebuchinde, from Uganda, has taken over the court’s temporary presidency.
The ICJ currently deals with several well-known cases, including the genocide incident against Israel.
South Africa filed a complaint with the court in December 2023, stating that the actions of the occupation regime in the Gaza Strip were “genocide in character” as it aims to bring about the destruction of most Palestinian people, race and ethnic groups.
Several countries have since joined the incident, including Belize, Cuba, Nicaragua, Colombia, Libya, Mexico, Palestine, Spain, Turkey, Bolivia, Maldives, Chile and Ireland.
In January 2024, the ICJ issued a ruling, ordering Israel to take all steps to prevent Gaza’s genocide, but stopped calling for an immediate ceasefire.
Israel launched a brutal onslaught of Gaza on October 7, 2023, but failed to achieve its declared goal despite killing at least 48,397 Palestinians, mostly women and children.
The occupation regime accepted the long-standing terms of negotiation by Hamas Resistance Group under the Gaza ceasefire that began on January 19th.