Amal Ramzi Alamuddin (3 February 1978) is a London-based British-Lebanese lawyer, activist, and author. She is a barrister at Doughty Street Chambers, specialising in international law, criminal law, human rights, and extradition.[2] Her clients include Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, in his fight against extradition.[3] She has also represented the former prime minister of Ukraine, Yulia Tymoshenko.[4]
Early life
Alamuddin was born in Beirut, Lebanon, to father Ramzi Alamuddin, a retired professor of business studies at the American University of Beirut, who returned to Lebanon in 1991[5]and is from a prominent Lebanese Druze family,[6][7] and mother Bariaa (née Miknass) Alamuddin, foreign editor of the Pan-Arab newspaper al-Hayat,[1] who is a Sunni Muslim fromTripoli, Lebanon.[8][9] Alamuddin has three siblings - one sister, Tala, and two half-brothers, Samer and Ziad,[1] from her father's first marriage.[10]
During the 1980s, when the Lebanese Civil War was in full scale, Alamuddin's family left Lebanon for London and settled in Gerrards Cross.[11] She was two years old at the time.[1]
Alamuddin's father is from the town of Baakline,[12][13] a suburb of Beirut where many Lebanese Druze live.[1][14] Alamuddin's mother is from Tripoli, Lebanon, where a significant community of Lebanese Sunni Muslims live.[8][9]
Education
Alamuddin attended Dr Challoner's High School, a girls' grammar school located in Little Chalfont, Buckinghamshire. She then studied at St. Hugh's College, Oxford, where she received an Exhibition scholarship[15] and the Shrigley Award.[16] In 2000, Alamuddin graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Jurisprudence (Oxford's equivalent to the LLB)[17] from St. Hugh's College, Oxford.
The following year, in 2001, she entered New York University School of Law to study for the Master of Laws degree, where she was a clerk for the clerkships program at the International Court of Justice.[18] She received the Jack J. Katz Memorial Award for excellence in entertainment law.[19][20] For one semester while at NYU, she worked as a student law clerk at the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in the offices of Sonia Sotomayor, who is now on the Supreme Court of the United States.[21] In 2004, she worked at the International Court of Justice and was one of two NYU-sponsored clerks at the Court. She clerked under Judge Vladen S. Vereshchetin from Russia and Judge Nabil Elaraby from Egypt.[18][22]
Career
Alamuddin worked at Sullivan & Cromwell in New York City for three years as part of the Criminal Defense and Investigations Group, which included the criminal probe of Enron and Arthur Andersen.[16][19]
She worked in the Office of the Prosecutor at the UN Special Tribunal for Lebanon and at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.[23] She has been involved in high-profile cases representing the state of Cambodia, the former Libyan intelligence chief Abdallah Al Senussi, Yulia Tymoshenko and Julian Assange, and is an adviser to the King of Bahrain in connection with the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry headed by Professor M. Cherif Bassiouni.[19]
Alamuddin returned to the UK in 2010,[24] where she is a barrister in London (Bar of England & Wales, Inner Temple) at Doughty Street Chambers.[16]
In 2013, Alamuddin has been appointed to a number of United Nations commissions including as adviser to Special Envoy Kofi Annan on Syria and as Counsel to the 2013 Drone Inquiry by UN human rights rapporteur Ben Emmerson QC into the use of drones in counter-terrorism operations.[20][25][26]
In May 2014, Alamuddin met with Foreign Secretary William Hague and a group of leading female campaigners "to discuss how to drive forward international action to protect children in conflict zones from rape and sexual violence" before the June 2014 Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict in London, part of the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative launched by the Foreign Secretary in 2012, which is aimed at strengthening international efforts to respond to sexual violence in conflict zones. Alamuddin is a member of the multidisciplinary Team of Experts established on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.[27]
In August 2014, Alamuddin was selected for the UN's three-member commission to look into possible violations of the rules of war in Gaza during the Israel–Gaza conflict. She however said she was unable to accept the position. She stated "There are various reports published today stating that I have been appointed as one of three members of the UN Commission of Inquiry for Gaza. I am horrified by the situation in the occupied Gaza Strip, particularly the civilian casualties that have been caused, and strongly believe that there should be an independent investigation and accountability for crimes that have been committed."[28]
Alamuddin has lectured students on international criminal law at SOAS (University of London), The New School in New York City, The Hague Academy of International Law, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.[19]
Personal life
Alamuddin is fluent in Arabic, English and French.[29][30] Alamuddin's father is Druze, a quasi-Muslim sect in Lebanon that is part of the Shia Islam denomination of Islam.[9][12][13][14][31]Alamuddin's mother is Sunni Muslim.[8][9]
Alamuddin became engaged to actor George Clooney on 28 April 2014.[26] Alamuddin and Clooney officially married on 29 September 2014 in at Venice's city hall (at Ca' Farsetti)[32] in Venice, Italy, following a star-studded wedding ceremony two days earlier, also[33] in Venice.[34][35][36] They were married by Clooney’s friend Walter Veltroni, the former mayor of Rome.[36][37] The wedding was widely reported in the media.[38]
Works or publications
- Alamuddin, Amal. 19 August 2014. The Anatomy of an Unfair Trial. Huffington Post.
- Alamuddin, Amal, Nidal Nabil Jurdi, and David Tolbert, eds. The Special Tribunal for Lebanon: Law and Practice. Oxford, United Kingdom : Oxford University Press, 2014. ISBN 978-0-199-68745-9
- "The UN investigation of the Hariri assassination" by Amal Alamuddin and Anna Bonini
- "The relationship between the UN investigation commission and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon: Problems of Principle and Practice" by Amal Alamuddin
- Zidar, Andraž, and Olympia Bekou. Contemporary Challenges for the International Criminal Court. London : British Institute of International and Comparative Law, 2014. ISBN 978-1-905-22151-6
- Alamuddin, Amal. 10 December 2012. "Will Syria go to the ICC?" The Lawyer magazine.
- Alamuddin, Amal. April 2012 "Does Libya Have to Surrender Saif Al-slam Gaddafi to The Hague?" Mizaan: The Newsletter from Lawyers for Justice in Libya. Issue 1.
- Alamuddin, Amal, and Philippa Webb. 2010. "Expanding Jurisdiction Over War Crimes Under Article 8 of the ICC Statute". Journal of International Criminal Justice. 8, no. 5: 1219-1243. ISSN 1478-1387 doi: 10.1093/jicj/mqq066[23]
- Khan, Karim A. A., Caroline Buisman, and Christopher Gosnell. Principles of Evidence in International Criminal Justice. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010. ISBN 978-0-199-58892-3
- "Collection of evidence" by Amal Alamuddin p. 231-305
References
- ^ a b c d e Karam, Joyce (28 April 2014). "Who is Clooney’s fiancée Amal Alamuddin?". Al Arabiya. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ Nicole Lyn, Pesce; Dillon, Nancy; Rivera, Zayda (29 April 2014). "George Clooney Finally Meets His Match With Human Rights Lawyer Amal Alamuddin". Daily News. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
- ^ Rothman, Michael (19 March 2014). "5 Things About Amal Alamuddin". ABC News. Archived from the original on 30 April 2014. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
- ^ Johnston, Ian (27 April 2014). "George Clooney Engaged To Amal Alamuddin: Actor To Marry British Human Rights Lawyer Who Has Represented Julian Assange". The Independent. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
- ^ "George Clooney's Fiancée Amal Alamuddin Has Beauty, Brains And Style". The Straits Times. 27 April 2014.Archived from the original on 28 April 2014. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
- ^ Globe Staff (11 July 2014). "George Clooney rejects Daily Mail’s apology for ‘fabricated’ story". The Globe and Mail(Phillip Crawley). Retrieved 21 August 2014.
- ^ "Talk of the village: What does Amal Alamuddin's Druze community think of Clooney engagement?". The Daily Star(Al Bawaba). 26 May 2014. Retrieved 21 August 2014.
- ^ a b c Gatten, Emma (13 September 2014). "Amal Alamuddin: George Clooney's Betrothed a Star Among Druze Community". NBC News. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ a b c d Gebeily, Maya (30 April 2014). "Amal Alamuddin from “Druze family of sheikhs”". NOW News. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ AFP (1 May 2014). "Lebanon in frenzy over Clooney-Alamuddin engagement". NOW News. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ Flanagan, Padraic (28 April 2014). "George Clooney Engaged to High-Flying British Lawyer". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
- ^ a b "Clooney, Alamuddin set Sept. 20 marriage date". Daily Star. 8 August 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ a b Younes, Ali (30 April 2014). "Who is Amal Alamuddin, reported George Clooney’s new fiancee". The Arab Daily News. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ a b Smith, Lee (19 May 2014). "But Is It Good for the Druze?George Clooney and his future in-laws.". The Weekly Standard. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ "Colleges, Halls, and Societies: Notices - St Hugh's College". Oxford University Gazette. 23 October 1997.Archived from the original on 29 April 2014.
- ^ a b c McNeal, Gregory S. (27 April 2014). "International Lawyer And Scholar Amal Alamuddin Engaged To George Clooney". Forbes. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
- ^ "Law (Jurisprudence)". University of Oxford. Archived from the original on 1 October 2013. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
- ^ a b "Clerkships - Prior and Present Clerks". Institute for International Law and Justice. New York University School of Law. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ a b c d "Amal Alamuddin" (PDF). Doughty Street Chambers. Archived from the original on 28 April 2014.
- ^ a b Schumann, Rebecka (29 October 2013). "George Clooney Girlfriend Revealed: Who Is Amal Alamuddin? 6 Fast Facts About The Actor's New Love". International Business Times. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
- ^ Mathis-Lilley, Ben (28 April 2014). "London Human Rights Lawyer Amal Alamuddin Is Engaged". Slate. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ Chi, Paul (27 February 2014). "George Clooney Engaged to Amal Alamuddin: 5 Fast Facts About Her". People.Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
- ^ a b "Expanding Jurisdiction over War Crimes under Article 8 of the ICC Statute". Journal of International Criminal Justice 8 (5): 1219. doi:10.1093/jicj/mqq066. Archived from the original on 14 January 2012.
- ^ Butter, Susannah (20 August 2014). "Amal Alamuddin’s caseload: why the future Mrs George Clooney isn't about to give up her day job as a human rights lawyer". The Evening Standard. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ "UN SRCT Drone Inquiry - Credits: UNSRCT Team". United Nations. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
- ^ a b Cohen, Sandy (28 April 2014). "George Clooney sheds most eligible bachelor status, gives up serial romance for engagement". Star Tribune. Associated Press. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
- ^ Foley, Rose. "Leading UK women unite with UNICEF UK in call to end sexual violence against children in conflict".UNICEF UK. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ Ryder, Taryn (11 August 2014). "Amal Alamuddin 'Horrified,' but Unable to Serve on Gaza Rights U.N. Probe".Yahoo! Celebrity. Archived from the original on 26 August 2014. Retrieved 12 August 2014.
- ^ Lily Harrison and Natalie Finn (26 April 2014). "5 Things to Know About George Clooney's Fiancée, Amal Alamuddin (Other Than, OMG, She's Marrying George Clooney!)". E!. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014.
- ^ Respers France, Lisa (28 April 2014). "What we know about George Clooney's fiancee". CNN. Archived from the original on 13 May 2014. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
- ^ Safi, Omid (29 April 2014). "What is the religion of George Clooney’s fiancé, Ms. Amal Alamduddin? Druze? Muslim?". Religion News Service. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ Rothman, Michael (29 September 2014). "George Clooney Marries Amal Alamuddin in Civil Ceremony: All About the Ca' Farsetti Palace". Good Morning America (ABC News). Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ^ Anderson, Ariston (15 September 2014). "George Clooney Wedding Details Leaked by Italian Media". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
- ^ Kington, Tom (27 September 2014). "George Clooney Marries In Venice Ceremony". Sky News. Retrieved 27 September 2014.
- ^ Oldenburg, Ann; Puente, Maria (27 September 2014). "George Clooney, Amal Alamuddin marry in Venice". USA Today. Retrieved 27 September 2014.
- ^ a b Fornasier, Claudia (15 September 2014). "George, sì davanti a Veltroni". Corriere della Sera. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
- ^ Squires, Nick (15 September 2014). "George Clooney 'to be married by ex-Rome mayor'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 27 September 2014.
- ^ Squires, Nick (29 September 2014). "George Clooney's wedding to Amal Alamuddin finally ends". The Telegraph. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
