UN elects five judges to International Court of Justice — Anadolu Agency

The UN General Assembly and the UN Security Council have elected five judges to the International Court of Justice for nine-year terms beginning on February 6, 2027. According to Anadolu Agency, the newly elected judges will take office after the terms of five current members of the court expire on February 5, 2027.

Newly elected judges

The court will include Dapo Akande of the United Kingdom, François Alabrune of France, Mahmoud Daifallah Hmoud of Jordan, Rena Lee of Singapore, and Phoebe Okowa of Kenya.

Under the court’s statute, a candidate must obtain an absolute majority of votes in both bodies—the General Assembly and the Security Council—to be elected. Akande, Alabrune, Hmoud, and Lee received the required support in both bodies in the first round of voting.

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Voting for the fifth seat

The election for the fifth position required additional rounds because the General Assembly and the Security Council initially failed to agree on a single candidate. Ecuador’s representative, Marcelo Vázquez-Bermúdez, received the required majority in the Security Council but did not obtain it in the General Assembly, after which he withdrew his candidacy. Phoebe Okowa subsequently received the support of both UN bodies.

The International Court of Justice, based in The Hague, is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. It settles legal disputes between states and gives advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by authorized UN bodies.