Japanese judge critical of Israel elected as new ICJ president

The International Court of Justice on Monday appointed Yuji Iwasawa as its new president, replacing Nawaf Salam, the new prime minister of Lebanon.

The 70-year-old will head the court until Salam’s term was due to expire on February 5, 2027, the ICJ said in a statement.

Iwasawa has been a member of the court since June 2018. Before joining the ICJ, he was professor of international law at the University of Tokyo and chair of the United Nations Human Rights Committee.

The Japanese judge had previously condemned Israel’s treatment of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank as discriminatory. 

Last July, when the ICJ called Israel’s occupation of the West Bank unlawful and should end “as rapidly as possible”, Iwasawa wrote a separate opinion saying the court should have gone further in criticising Israel’s actions in the Palestinian territory..

“The discriminatory aspect of the dual legal system introduced by Israel in the West Bank deserved more attention,” he wrote. “While settlers are subject to Israeli criminal law, Palestinians living in the West Bank are governed by military law and prosecuted in military courts.

“Differential treatment between Palestinians and settlers is also found in the national health insurance law, taxation law, election law, and in the enforcement of traffic laws … the dual legal system introduced by Israel in the West Bank treats Palestinians and settlers differently.”

Often dubbed the “world court”, the ICJ, which sits in the Peace Palace in The Hague, rules in disputes between nations. It is the UN’s highest court.

It is sometimes confused with the International Criminal Court, also based in The Hague, which tries individuals for the world’s worst crimes including suspected war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The ICJ is currently dealing with several especially high-profile cases.

It is weighing on a case brought by South Africa that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip amid its war.

The ICJ is also deliberating a case between Ukraine and Russia over Moscow’s 2022 invasion.

And the court is preparing a so-called advisory opinion on the responsibility of nations with regard to climate change.

The president heads the 15-judge bench but plays a largely ceremonial role, giving speeches in the court’s name and representing the institution worldwide, as well as reading out the ICJ rulings.

But the president’s voice carries the same weight as the other judges in judicial deliberations, except in the event of a tie, in which case the president has the casting vote.