Ugandan judge Julia Sebutinde, the only African serving on the International Court of Justice (ICJ), is set to assume the presidency of the world’s highest court following the departure of Lebanese Judge Nawaf Salam.

Salam vacated the seat on January 13, 2025, after being appointed Lebanon’s prime minister-designate.

Sebutinde made headlines in January 2024 when she was the sole judge to vote against all six provisional measures in South Africa’s genocide case against Israel, which sought to protect Palestinians from Israeli military operations in Gaza.

Her decision sparked significant backlash, particularly from Africans, with the Ugandan government distancing itself from her stance, clarifying that it did not represent the country’s official position.

As of mid-January 2025, the Lancet medical journal reported a 41% undercounting of the Gaza death toll, which it had previously estimated in early July 2024 to have exceeded 186,000, mostly women and children.

Sebutinde has been a judge at the ICJ since 2012, making history as the first African woman to serve on the court. Her upcoming presidency comes at a critical time for the ICJ, which has been handling high-profile cases, including South Africa’s genocide case against Israel. Pretoria filed the case in December 2023, accusing Israel of committing genocide during its military operations in Gaza.

Israel and Hamas have since agreed a cessation of hostilities set to take effect on Sunday.