UN Inquiry Commission on Occupied Palestinian Territory & Israel appoints Indian jurist S. Muralidhar as chair
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The United Nations has named senior advocate and former Orissa High Court Chief Justice S. Muralidhar as Chair of the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel, in what the world body indicated was a significant appointment placing an Indian jurist at the head of one of its most closely scrutinised human rights investigations following the ceasefire in Gaza.
The announcement, according to the UN, was made by Human Rights Council President Ambassador Jürg Lauber.
The UN further said that Justice Muralidhar would be taking over from Brazilian human rights expert Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro.
It was also stated that the commission’s other members would continue to include Florence Mumba of Zambia and Chris Sidoti of Australia, with Sidoti being reappointed after his earlier term.
The UN clarified that Justice Muralidhar would lead the three-member panel in his capacity as Chair, Maktoob Media reported.
The Commission said its mandate includes investigating alleged violations, determining responsibility, and issuing recommendations aimed at accountability and justice for victims.
According to the United Nations, the body was established in 2021 through a resolution of the Human Rights Council S-30/1 which called for an immediate and continuing independent international investigation into alleged breaches of international humanitarian law and abuses of international human rights law in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and in Israel dating back to April 13, 2021.
The resolution also instructed the Commission to study the deeper structural causes of recurring violence and instability, including systematic discrimination and repression linked to national, ethnic, racial, or religious identity. The Commission reports each year to both the UN General Assembly and the Council, the United Nations said.
The Council further indicated that in 2024 it had broadened the Commission’s brief and requested separate reports on Israeli settlements and arms transfers, including weapons used during the Gaza war that began on October 7, 2023. In a report issued in September 2025, the Commission stated that it had found that Israel committed genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Describing Justice Muralidhar’s background, the UN noted that he had practised before the Supreme Court of India for nearly twenty years, represented the National Human Rights Commission, and acted as amicus curiae in multiple public-interest cases. It said he was appointed a judge of the Delhi High Court in 2006 and later became Chief Justice of the Orissa High Court in 2021, where he led reforms such as court-record digitisation and the establishment of a Judicial Archives and Museum of Justice.
After retiring in 2023, the UN added, Muralidhar returned to legal practice and was designated Senior Advocate by the Supreme Court, while also remaining a known critic of the government led by Narendra Modi.