News Archive

M. Cherif Bassiouni, ’67, died on September 25, 2107, at his home in Chicago. He was 79 years old.

Born in Cairo, Bassiouni immigrated to the United States in 1962. He began his education in Egypt, where he received an LL.B. from the University of Cairo. He also undertook legal studies in France, Switzerland, and the United States. In the U.S., he received a J.D. from IU McKinney, an LL.M. from John Marshall Law School, and an S.J.D. from George Washington University Law Center. Bassiouni helped found the International Human Rights Law Institute at DePaul University in Chicago, where he was a member of the faculty from 1964 to 2012.

Bassiouni was often called the “father of international criminal law,” and much of his work centered around the creation of a world court for international crimes, a venue with jurisdiction over genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. He is considered by many as the seminal force behind the creation of the International Criminal Court, and is often cited as a war crimes expert. He had been appointed to a total of 22 United Nations positions, including several appointments concerning the creation of the International Criminal Court, appointments examining human rights violations in several countries, and work on groups devoted to crime prevention.

Bassiouni also served as a consultant to the U.S. Department of State and Department of Justice on many projects, including the international trafficking of drugs, international control of terrorism, and defense of the U.S. hostages in Iran.

Nominated in 1999 for the Nobel Peace Prize for his work toward establishing the International Criminal Court, Bassiouni has been honored with a variety of awards and accolades throughout his life. In addition to awards from the universities where he has taught and studied, he has received the Hague Prize for International Law, and the United Nationals Adlai E. Stevenson Award, among a host of others. In 2000, he received the Distinguished Alumni Award from IU McKinney.