Champion of Justice: Adila Hashem’s Legal Journey Against Genocide Allegations

Watan-Once South Africa filed a lawsuit against Israel at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, accusing it of genocide against Palestinians during its war on Gaza, attention turned to the only Muslim in the legal team and Gaza’s advocate in The Hague: Dr. Adila Hashem, or Adeela Hashem from Durban, South Africa.

Adila Hashem is a renowned South African lawyer, known for her significant contributions to constitutional rights and social justice reforms.

Dr. Adila Hashem is a Muslim legal and human rights advocate

She was born in 1965 in Durban, Natal province. In the late 1980s, she won the Franklin Thomas Fellowship to pursue a Master of Laws degree at Drew University in the United States. Subsequently, she obtained a Master of Laws from St. Louis University.

Hashem was granted a scholarship to pursue a doctoral degree in law at the University of Notre Dame in the United States, completing her PhD in 2006. She has been a member of the Johannesburg Bar since June 2003.

Adila Hashem has been practicing law for two decades and also serves as an acting judge. Her preferred areas of practice include constitutional law, administrative law, health law, and competition law.

She has represented cases in various divisions of the South African Supreme Court and Constitutional Court.

In her arguments before the International Court of Justice, prominent South African lawyer Adila Hashem stated that the Israeli bombing campaign aims to “destroy the lives of Palestinians” and has pushed Palestinians “to the brink of famine.”

She stated, “Genocidal operations are never announced in advance, but this court benefits from evidence obtained over the past 13 weeks, which incontrovertibly shows a pattern of behavior and relevant intentions justifying a plausible charge of committing acts of genocide.”

As a signatory to the treaty, South Africa has the ability to bring Israel before the International Court of Justice, which adjudicates disputes between states and is often referred to as the “World Court.”