Ex-Justice Muralidhar Appointed as Chair of UN Inquiry Commission on Occupied Palestinian Territory

Key Points

The United Nations Human Rights Council has appointed former Odisha High Court Chief Justice S. Muralidhar as Chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel. The announcement was made on Thursday, 27 November 2025.

The three-member commission was created by the Human Rights Council in 2021 to investigate all alleged violations of international humanitarian law and abuses of international human rights law in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and in Israel since 13 April 2021. The panel is mandated to examine violations, identify those responsible and make recommendations to ensure accountability and justice for victims.

Muralidhar succeeds Brazilian expert Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro as Chair. He will lead the commission alongside Florence Mumba of Zambia and Chris Sidoti of Australia. The appointment was announced by UN Human Rights Council President Ambassador Jürg Lauber.

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The commission reports annually to both the Human Rights Council and the UN General Assembly. In 2024 the council expanded the commission’s scope, directing it to present additional reports on settlers and on arms transfers, including weapons used during Israeli military operations in Gaza after 7 October 2023. In its report released in September 2025 the commission concluded that Israel had committed genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Justice Muralidhar is a senior Indian jurist with extensive experience in the country’s courts and human rights institutions. He practised at the Supreme Court of India for nearly two decades and served as counsel for the National Human Rights Commission. He was appointed a judge of the Delhi High Court in 2006 and assumed office as Chief Justice of the Odisha High Court in 2021. He has returned to practicing law since his retirement in 2023.

Muralidhar has been praised by activists and legal bodies for his judgements over the years, while allegedly being punished by the government.

The commission’s mandate also directs it to examine the underlying root causes of recurrent tensions, instability and the protracted nature of the conflict. This includes scrutiny of patterns of systematic discrimination and repression based on national, ethnic, racial or religious identity.

The panel’s findings and recommendations are expected to continue to draw close international scrutiny. The commission has previously been asked to broaden its reporting and its future work will be followed closely by member states and human rights organisations. [Rh]

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