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The Arab Organisation for Human Rights in the UK (AOHR UK) has written to the judges of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), calling for the removal of Ugandan Judge Julia Sebutinde, Vice-President of the Court. The letter pointed out that Sebutinde had breached Articles 2 and 18 of the Court’s Statute when she openly revealed her ideological bias in favour of Israel, despite the ongoing genocide being committed against the Palestinian people in Gaza and across the occupied Palestinian territories.

Article 2 of the Court’s Statute obliges judges to display integrity, impartiality, and independence. Should any of these conditions be breached, Article 18 provides that the judge concerned must be removed with the consent of the other Members of the Court.

The AOHR UK added that Judge Sebutinde has not only abandoned impartiality and integrity but has also expressed messianic religious ideas that encourage the perpetuation of the crime of genocide, which has already claimed tens of thousands of victims, the majority of whom are women, children, and the elderly.

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The AOHR UK explained that on 10 August 2025, during a speech delivered in a church in Uganda, Judge Sebutinde openly declared her religious support for the actions of the occupying power, stating:

“The Lord relies on me to stand with Israel… signs of the end times are appearing in the Middle East, and I want to be on the right side of history… I am convinced that time is running out, and I encourage you to follow developments in Israel. I feel humbled that God has allowed me to be part of the last days.”

The rights group emphasised that such statements were not surprising. It recalled that when the Court ordered provisional measures in the Gaza genocide case, and later issued its Advisory Opinion on 19 July 2024 regarding the nature of the Israeli occupation, Judge Sebutinde was the only judge to oppose all measures, including the facilitation of humanitarian aid. Her lengthy dissenting opinion to the Advisory Opinion clearly revealed her religious convictions and her absolute support for the occupation, denying—through biblical lens—the existence of Palestine and the Palestinian people.

Sebutinde’s dissenting opinion, AOHR UK noted, relied heavily on biblical narratives and stories granting Israel fictitious rights, thereby conferring false legitimacy on the horrific crimes committed against Palestinian civilians. “Such reasoning not only contradicts the foundations of international law but also emboldens the continuation of genocide, undermining the very principles upon which the Court’s authority rests;” the letter read. 

AOHR UK pointed out that Judge Sebutinde’s expressed views “mirror the rhetoric of Israeli leaders such as Netanyahu, Ben Gvir, and Smotrich, who for over 22 months of killing, destruction, starvation, and displacement have invoked biblical and Talmudic narratives to justify crimes and spur on the military in pursuit of the “Greater Israel” project, as Netanyahu recently articulated.”

Relatedly, the AOHR UK urged states, scholars, thinkers, lawyers, and legal practitioners worldwide to press the judges of the ICJ to remove Judge Sebutinde, in order to safeguard the integrity, impartiality, and independence of the Court—particularly in light of overwhelming evidence that Israel considers itself a state above the law, emboldened by the colonial support of the West led by the United States.

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This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.