Law & Society Institute, Humboldt University Berlin Repeatedly Violates Academic Integrity by Inviting Israeli Supreme Court Judge

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Law & Society Institute, Humboldt University Berlin Repeatedly Violates Academic Integrity by Inviting Israeli Supreme Court Judge

Humboldt University Berlin, Law & Society Institute is hosting the event  “Can judges protect democracy?”  with Daphne Barak-Erez, Supreme Court of Israel,  26 May 2025.

It is with deep distress that we write to you about the abandonment  of ethical, academic and legal standards and responsibilities by Humboldt University, Law & Society Institute (LSI) for inviting, for the second time since October 2023, a representative of the Israeli Supreme Court, judge Daphne Barak-Erez. Barak-Erez represents a court that “has given its seal of approval to all of Israel’s actions – withholding medical treatment, the disappearance of people, denial of media access to Gaza, and above all, starving the population of Gaza.” *(1)

On  March 27, 2025  the Israeli Supreme Court  rejected a petition against the starvation of Gaza’s residents. It accepted the state’s argument that there was no restriction on the entry of food into Gaza and that there was no real shortage of food there. *(2)

What should be the objective of a Law and Society Institute, if not the challenge of law’s claim to legality with empirical reality? And therefore, in the spirit of our commitment to the norms and ethics of socio-legal research, we will start by stating some empirical facts:

  • 1. Law & Society Institute (LSI) refuses to engage with its own methodology and erases Palestine in the process:

If you search for the word “Gaza” on the LSI website, it will result in 0 search results. The State of Israel’s ongoing Nakba *(3) and genocide *(4) in Gaza is now in its 20th month. During this Genocide, Israeli forces have mass murdered close to 53000 people (not including those whose bodies are still under debris), about 70% of them children and women. The overwhelming number of women and children shows that Israel has indiscriminately killed unarmed civilians as a policy of extermination. 

Those protesting genocidal violence  in Berlin, such as  students, staff,  academics and artists are experiencing  German state violence, police brutality and racist and obviously  illegal actions, especially if they are  racialized persons. They witness institutional and state silencing of their anti-genocide stand, especially but not exclusively, if they are Palestinian.  *(5)

And yet,  LSI did not consider the need to address  these intersecting crisis of law domestically and internationally, as also reflected in the jurisprudence of the International Court of Justice . A crisis of liberal law that in many ways was intensified through German material and discursive support of Israeli state institutions, and yet absent and erased from the discourse on law and society at LSI. Socio-legal scholarship and law and society scholarship is not just interdisciplinary but actively reflects on the crisis of legality and its contextual manifestations. LSI’s silence as the world is witnessing a real-time genocide on our screens shows an abandonment of academic responsibility by LSI. 

  • 2. Law & Society Institute whitewashed the crimes of representatives of the Israeli Supreme Court

This is the second time that Humboldt University, Law & Society Institute is inviting Daphne Barak-Erez, sitting judge of the Israel Supreme Court since the start of the ongoing genocide in Gaza and escalating targeted violence, illegal military siege over occupied Palestinian land,  and continuing land usurpment and displacement of Palestinian communities.  On Thursday, 8 February 2024, Barak-Erez joined a panel discussion “Judging in a constitutional democracy”, jointly organised by Humboldt University Law Faculty, University of Münster and the Hertie School’s Centre for Fundamental Rights. Protesting students confronted the judge with her judicial legacy so far that includes the following  long list of horrifying court decisions :

  • The Israeli Supreme Court, including Daphna Barek-Erez, upheld Israel’s Jewish Nation-State Law, a judgement that guarantees exclusive Jewish self-determination only and thus legalizes  Jewish ethnonationalism over Palestinian self-determination  and encourages Jewish settlement activity as a task of constitutional “national value”. *(6)
  • Daphna Barak-Erez and her colleagues at the Israeli Supreme Court   have also approved arbitrary administrative detentions of innocent Palestinians without trial or evidence or charges of any crime.  *(7)
  • Barak-Erez and her colleagues at the Israel Supreme Court approved the land theft, dispossession and expulsion of 80 Palestinian families, in the  neighborhood of Silwan Jerusalem. *(8)
  •  Barak-Erez and her colleagues at the Israeli Supreme Court  have upheld the destruction of Palestinian homes as a form of collective punishment in multiple judgements. *(9)
  • In January 2024 Barak-Erez and her colleagues rejected the petition of the Foreign Press Association to access the besieged Gaza. *(10) At a time when foreign press is extremely critical to document the extent of Israel’s crimes  on the Palestinian people in Gaza, the court ruled that it was upholding press freedom by denying foreign press entry into Gaza without embedding themselves in the Israeli army.  

Given that LSI has  abandoned its academic, ethical and legal responsibilities, perhaps the Law  Society Institute  at the Humboldt University Berlin should stop taking up space within Law and Society discussions. If LSI  considers  having any ethical and moral commitment to justice, freedom, equality and humanity as a Law and Society Institute, then we hope you will rethink whether it is appropriate to go ahead with the event on 26th May. If in the future you want to have an honest and unbiased dialogue on the state of democracy, human rights and rule of law in the region, we recommend that you consider inviting Raji Sourani, Shawal Jabarin or Hassan Jabareen for a discussion at LSI.

You can add your signature here

*End notes

(1) Nir Hasson, Chen Maanit​, A Lost Battle for Human Rights: Throughout the War Israel’s High Court Has Denied All Requests to Protect Gazans , May 23rd, 2025, Haaretz.

(2) Neve Gordon, Muna Haddad, How did the Israeli Supreme Court Legitimise Starvation as a Weapon of War? An Autopsy of a Ruling (Part 1) – Opinio Juris.

(3) Eghbariah, R., 2024. Toward Nakba as a legal concept. Columbia Law Review, 124(4), pp.887-992. Avalable at https://columbialawreview.org/content/toward-nakba-as-a-legal-concept/ (last accessed May 23rd, 2025).

(4) OHCHR, UN Special Committee finds Israel’s warfare methods in Gaza consistent with genocide, including use of starvation as weapon of war , November 14th, 2024; Amnesty International, Amnesty International investigation concludes Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza , December 5th, 2024; University Network for Human Rights,Genocide in Gaza: Analysis of International Law and its Application to Israel’s Military Actions since October 7, 2023 — , May 15th, 2024; Fatima Al-Kassab , ICJ says it’s ‘plausible’ Israel committed genocide in Gaza, January 26th, 2024, NPR; Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention and Human Security,  The Lemkin Institute condemns Israel, Europe, Canada, and the USA for Gaza Genocide , April 6th, 2025 ; United Nations press Release, The Acting Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide and the Special Adviser on the Responsibility to Protect Raise Alarm over Escalation of Violence in Gaza, March 19th, 2025, available at  https://www.un.org/sites/un2.un.org/files/statement_special_advisers_genocide_prevention_and_r2p_on_gaza_19032025.pdf ; Human Rights Watch,  Israel’s Crime of Extermination, Acts of Genocide in Gaza , December 19th, 2024;   Kasper van Laarhoven, Eva Peek , Derk Walters, Zeven gerenommeerde wetenschappers vrijwel eensgezind: Israël pleegt in Gaza genocide, May 14th, 2025, available at https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2025/05/14/zeven-gerenommeerde-wetenschappers-vrijwel-eensgezind-israel-pleegt-in-gaza-genocide-a4893293;  Imogen Foulkes, Gaza war: UN rights expert accuses Israel of acts of genocide , March 26th, 2024, BBC. ECCHR,  ​​Gaza and the matter of genocide: , December 2024; OHCHR, End unfolding genocide or watch it end life in Gaza: UN experts say States face defining choice, May 7th, 2025; Human Rights Watch,   Gaza: Latest Israeli Plan Inches Closer to Extermination, May 15th, 2025.

(5) ELSC, Executive Summary of the ELSC database of anti-Palestinian repression, available at  https://elsc.support/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/ELSC-Executive-Summary-of-the-ELSC-database-of-anti-Palestinian-repression.pdf (last accessed May 24th, 2025)

(6) Hasson v. The Knesset,  HCJ 5555/18, December 22, 2020. 

(7) For example, John Doe v. Minister of Defense, Admin Detention Appeal, 406/21, January 28, 2021.

(8) Sarahan v. The Custodian General, HCJ 7446/17, November 21, 2018.

(9) Rabha v. Military Commander of the West Bank, HCJ 480/21, January 27, 2021.

(10) TOI Staff, High Court says Israel can keep barring foreign reporters from Gaza , January 10th, 2025, Times of Israel.

Signatures (list of May 26, 2025, see here for an update):

1. Dr. Nahed Samour (Radboud University/ Permanent Fellow Law & Society Institute, HU Berlin)

2. Guneet Kaur (PhD Candidate, Law & Society Institute, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin)

3. Angela Last (University of Leicester/University of Bonn)

4. Prof. Dr. Cengiz Barskanmaz (University of Applied Sciences Fulda)

5. Martijn de Koning (Associate Professor Islamstudies, Radboud University Nijmegen, the Netherlands)

6. Sabine Broeck (Professor, Universität Bremen)

7. Emilia Tudose (Independent Lawyer)

8. Sultan Doughan (Goldsmiths,  University of London )

9. Darryl Li ( University of Chicago)

10. Deniz Gedik (PhD candidate,  Law Faculty, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin)

11. Dr. Revital Madar (European University Institute) 

12. John Reynolds (School of Law & Criminology, Maynooth University, Ireland)

13. Jasa Veselinovic (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)

14. Dr S D Lulz (Lecturer (Asst. Professor), University of Exeter)

15. Schirin Amir-Moazami (Professor , Freie Universität Berlin )

16. Faisal Chaudhry (Assistant Professor of Law and History, UMass Law School)

17. Siddharth de Souza (University of Warwick)

18. Ivan Pupolizio   (Law Department, University of Bari)

19. Daniel Segal (Jean M Pitzer Emeritus, Pitzer College of the Claremont Colleges)

20. Prof. Dr. Christine Binzel (FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg)

21. Gee Semmalar (European University Institute) 

22. Nathalie Paris (Università of Genoa) 

23. Enrica Rigo (University Rome Tre)

24. Aurélia Kalisky (Centre Marc Bloch)

25. Davide Tomaselli (European University Institute) 

26. Souheir Edelbi (School of Law, Western Sydney University )

27. Dr Daphné Budasz (European University Institute) 

28. Dr. Laila Prager (Deutsche Aidshilfe)

29. Benjamin Schuetze (ABI, Freiburg)

30. Ramis Örlü (Professor, OsloMet – Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway)

31. Dr. Till Grallert (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin)

32. Ata Hindi (Birzeit/Tulane)

33. Usha Natarajan (University of Melbourne)

34. Carmen Becker (Professor, Leibniz Universität Hannover)

35. Prof. Dr. Marc Siegel (Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz)

36. François Graner (Research director, CNRS & Université Paris Cité) 

37. Sanaa Alimia (Associate Professor , Aga Khan University, Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations )

38. Caterina Peroni (CNR)

39. Luca Galantucci (Researcher, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche – Roma)

40. Nils Riecken (Ruhr-Universität Bochum)

41. Ahmed Abbes (Research Director, CNRS & IHES) 

42. Cecilia Mulawa (Diplom-Juristin (Schwerpunkt Volkerrecht))

43. Prof. Dr. Mark de Longueville (HTW Berlin)

44. Sonia Fayman (independent sociologist)

45. Mateo ALALUF (Professeur émérite, Université Libre de Bruxelles)

46. Ron Naiweld (Research associate, CNRS-EHESS)

47. Dr Ophira Gamliel (Senior lecturer , University of Glasgow )

48. Dr. Imad Mustafa (Freier Wissenschaftler)

49. Dr Shahd Hammouri (Lecturer in Law, University of Kent)

50. Nadav Finebooch (Tel Aviv University )

51. Oded Schechter (Talmud &  Philosophy)

52. Viviane Baladi (CNRS (retired))

53. Prof Hanna Kienzler (King’s College, London )

54. Sonia Dayan-Herzbrun (Emerita Professor, Université Paris Cité)

55. Sonja Brentjes (retired Professor)

56. Prof. Dr. Marwan Rashed (Sorbonne University)

57. Khaled El Mahmoud (Research Assistant & PhD Candidate, University of Potsdam)

58. Yussef Al Tamimi (Professor, Central European University)

59. SUZOR-WEINER (Professor emeritus, Université Paris-Saclay)

60. Catherine Goldstein (Research Director, CNRS, Sorbonne Université et Université Paris Cité)

61. Lena Koch (Independent Lawyer)

62. Kanad Bagchi (Postdoctoral Researcher, International Law, University of Amsterdam)

63. Dr Ntina Tzouvala (UNSW Faculty of Law)

64. MIETTON Michel (Professeur émérite, Université Lyon J. Moulin)

65. Michael Barenboim (Barenboim-Said Akademie )

66. Dr. Julien Jeusette (Universität des Saarlandes) 

67. Dr. Simon Strick (University of Potsdam)

68. Dr Tanzil Chowdhury (Associate Professor of Law, Queen Mary, University of London)

69. Julia Emtseva (European University Institute) 

70. Milena Bister (Substitute Professor, Institute for European Ethnology, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin)

71. Dr. Hannah Tzuberi (Freie Universität Berlin)

72. Nadia Fadil (Associate Professor in Anthropology, KU Leuven)

73. Michelle Burgis-Kasthala (Professor, University of Edinburgh)

74. Atalia Omer (Professor, The University of Notre Dame (USA))

75. Dr. Omer Aijazi (University of Manchester)

76. Tomas Persson (Lund University)

77. Ömer Alkin (Professor, Hochschule Niederrhein)

78. Nitzan Lebovic (Professor, Chair of Holocaust Studies, Lehigh University)

79. Dr. Wendy Pearlman (Professor, Northwestern University)

80. PD Dr. Faysal Bibi (Museum für Naturkunde Berlin / Uni. Potsdam)

81. Madiha Z Sadiq (European University Institute)

82. Patricia Piberger (ZfA, TU Berlin)

83. Dr. Rebecca Smyth (Lecturer in Law, Birmingham City University)

84. Dr. Anya Topolski (Associate Professor in Ethics & Political Philosophy, Radboud University Nijmegen)

85. Dr. Kalika Mehta ( Humboldt Universität zu Berlin)

86. Dr Riley Linebaugh (Humboldt Universität zu Berlin)

87. Mohammad Fadel (Professor of Law, University of Toronto Faculty of Law)

88. Véronique Bontemps (CNRS)

89. Julia Grißmer (Rechtsanwältin )

90. Michael Harris (Professor of Mathematics, Columbia University)

91. Reza Zia-Ebrahimi (Reader in History, King’s College London)

92. Ilias Bany (Professor , Hamad bin Khalifa University )

93. Ali-Reza Bhojani (Assistant Professor in Islamic Ethics , University of Birmingham )

94. Lotika Singha (Member of International Solidarity for Academic Freedom in India (InSAF India))

95. Kathinka Evers (Uppsala University, Sweden)

96. Bill Martin (Visiting Professor, Pratt Institute in Berlin)

97. Rafaëlle Maison (Professeur de droit international, Paris Faculté DEM Sceaux)

98. Claire Debucquois (FNRS/European University Institute) 

99. Sruti Bala (Associate Professor, University of Amsterdam)

100. Dr Mazen Masri (Senior Lecturer in Law, City St. George’s, University of London)

101. Nicolas Boeglin (Profesor of Public International Law, Law Faculty, University of Costa Rica (UCR))

102. Amira Mittermaier, (Professor, University if Toronto)

103. Dr. Déborah V. Brosteaux (Postdoc, FNRS – Free University of Brussels)

104. Alice von Bieberstein (Visiting Professor, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin)

105. Dr. Kawthar El-Qasem  

106. Dr. Thomas Herzmark (Postdoctoral research fellow, University of Göttingen)

107. Sujith Xavier (Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Windsor)

108. Zinaida Miller (Northeastern University)

109. Dr. Barbara Van Dyck (Université Libre de Bruxelles)

110. Dr Mireia Garces de Marcilla (Lecturer in Law, University of Exeter)

111. Chowra Makaremi (Tenured Researcher, CNRS Paris)

112. Yolanda Scheytt (lawyer)

113. Dr Paola Zichi (Warwick Law School)

114. Michele Farisco (Uppsala University)

115. Dana Abdelfattah (Humboldt Universität)

116. Rosa Castillo (Freie Universität Berlin)

117. Matus Pollak (Freie Universität Berlin)

118. Prof.in Dr. Yalız Akbaba (Universitat Marburg)

119. Jorge Vega (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin)

120. Shohini Sengupta (HDR candidate, UNSW Sydney)

121. Renisa Mawani (Professor, University of British Columbia, Canada Research Chair in Colonial Legal Histories)

122. Danya Reda (Wayne State University Law School)

123. Christine Schwöbel-Patel (Professor of International Law, University of Warwick)

124. Uday Vir Garg (Freie Universität Berlin)

125. Juliane Hammer (Professor, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill)

126. Ivar EKELAND (Professor, former President, Université Paris-Dauphine)

127. Nadia Yaqub (Professor, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill)