HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL PRESIDENT APPOINTS HANNY MEGALLY OF EGYPT TO SERVE ON COMMISSION OF INQUIRY ON SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC

Arabic version

GENEVA, 13 October 2017 (Issued as received) - The President of the Human Rights Council, Ambassador Joaquín Alexander Maza Martelli of El Salvador, announced today the appointment of Hanny Megally of Egypt to serve as a member of the Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic.

Mr. Megally will join Paulo Sergio Pinheiro of Brazil and Karen Koning Abuzayd of the United States who were appointed to serve on the Commission shortly after it was created by the Council in August 2011 to investigate all alleged violations of international human rights law since March 2011 in the Syrian Arab Republic.

Mr. Megally brings to this position over 40 years of experience conducting and directing investigations and advocacy on human rights violations and humanitarian emergencies. He is currently a senior fellow at the New York University Centre on International Cooperation leading a program on dealing with the root causes of violent extremism. Prior to this, he has worked at senior levels of both civil society – having served with several international non-governmental organisations - and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, where he was the Director of the Asia, Pacific, Middle East and North Africa Branch (2011-2015).

He was the Acting President of the International Centre for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) from 2009-2010 and thereafter Vice President for Programs (2010 – 2011). He had served previously as ICTJ’s Director of Middle East and North Africa from 2003-2006. Mr. Megally was the Executive Director for the Middle East and North Africa for Human Rights Watch from 1997-2003. He also headed Amnesty International’s programs in the Middle East from 1984 to 1993 and served as their researcher in the region from 1977 until 1984.

Mr. Megally holds a Bachelor’s degree in Middle Eastern History and Politics from the University of London School of Oriental and African Studies. He did graduate studies at the London School of Economics. He speaks English, Arabic and French.

For information about the Commission of Inquiry please visit: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/IICISyria/Pages/IndependentInternationalCommission.aspx
For more information about the Human Rights Council please visit: http://www.ohchr.org/hrc

Media contact: Rolando Gómez, Public Information Officer OHCHR, + 41(0)22 917 9711, rgomez@ohchr.org



For use of the information media; not an official record

HRC/17/164E