M. Cherif Bassiouni

M. Cherif Bassiouni

Mahmoud Cherif Bassiouni (born in 1937 in Cairo, Egypt) is an Egyptian international United Nations war crimes expert, often called "the Father of International Criminal Law".

He is a Distinguished Research Professor of Law Emeritus at DePaul University College of Law in Chicago (since 1964), and President Emeritus of the University's International Human Rights Law Institute (1990–2006; 2007–09). He is also President of the Istituto Superiore Internazionale di Scienze Criminali (International Institute of Higher Studies in Criminal Sciences) (ISISC) in Siracusa, Italy (since 1988), he was also Dean of ISISC (1976–1988). He was the Secretary General of the International Association of Penal Law (Internationale Association De Droit Penal) (IADP) from 1974–1989, and was President of the IADP from 1989–2004, and is currently the Association's Honorary President.

He has been a non-resident Professor of Criminal Law at the University of Cairo since 1996, and was a Guest Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, DC in 1972. He was also a Visiting Professor of Law at New York University Law School in 1971, and was a Fulbright-Hays Professor of International Criminal Law at the University of Freiburg, Germany in 1970. In addition, he is a frequent lecturer at universities in the US and abroad.

He is also admitted to the practice of law in Illinois, Washington, DC, the United States Supreme Court, and the Second, Fifth, Seventh, Ninth, and Eleventh Circuits and the United States Court of Military Appeals. He is also admitted to practice before the Egyptian Supreme Court. Bassiouni has handled many international cases on extradition and international cooperation in criminal matters, and coordinated major litigation involving multiple parties, including states, on matters involving international law.

In 2007 he was awarded the Hague Prize for International Law for his "distinguished contribution in the field of international law". The winner of the Hague Prize is given the honour of selecting the fundamental principal of law on which the Hague Colloquium will be organized. Recently, Cherif has spoken out in support of the Gaza Flotilla.

He also made an appearance in the award-winning, PBS-broadcast documentary Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet (2002), produced by Unity Productions Foundation.