Arabic-speaking Legal Advisor

Introduction

Diakonia is a Swedish organization established in 1966, which works with local partners and other strategic actors in over 30 countries for the fulfilment of the right of all people to live a life in dignity. Diakonia’s mission is to change unfair political, economic, social and cultural structures that generate poverty, inequality, oppression and violence.

As part of its efforts to promote respect for human dignity in all circumstances, in 2004 Diakonia established a Centre in Jerusalem focused on international humanitarian law (IHL), the complementary and specific legal framework regulating armed conflict. In addition to its Jerusalem Desk, the Diakonia IHL Centre now also operates a Global Desk based in Stockholm, and Desks working out of Diakonia Country Offices in Lebanon and Mali.

The IHL Centre, like Diakonia as a whole, is committed to the promotion of equality, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace, and endeavours to apply feminist principles and to integrate a gender-responsive perspective throughout its work.

By promoting compliance with IHL and enforcement of its rules, the IHL Centre strives to generate more humanity in conflict, which Diakonia regards as a critical step towards the realization of its vision of a just, equal and sustainable world.

Background

The Jerusalem Desk advances the Diakonia IHL Centre’s overall objectives by functioning as a source of expertise on IHL and related areas of international law for actors operating in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) or on issues relating to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Desk conducts thorough and contextualized IHL-based analysis, and engages in related advocacy, capacity development and training. In these activities, it combines in-depth understanding of the context with a capacity to respond rapidly and provide IHL analysis of newly unfolding developments.

The Desk wishes to expand its legal team and in particular to enhance its capacity to provide IHL training and to engage in legal discourse in Arabic. To that end, the Desk is seeking to recruit an Arabic-speaking Legal Advisor with expertise in relevant fields of international law to join its team of Legal Advisors.

Objectives, Tasks and Deliverables

Overall Objective

To support the Diakonia IHL Centre Jerusalem Desk in the provision of IHL-focused legal briefings and legal training, in its advocacy activities, and in particular in its engagement with Palestinian organizations and communities, as well as other Arabic-speaking contacts.

Specific Tasks

• Supporting the implementation of a project on the legal framework protecting civil and political rights in situations of occupation, including with planning and outreach to key Palestinian interlocutors
• Conducting IHL-related legal research and analysis on issues pertinent to the oPt
• Drafting and reviewing legal documents of various kinds for internal reference and for publication
• Presenting legal briefs to stakeholders from State service and civil society
• Planning and delivering IHL trainings (in English and Arabic)
• Representing the Diakonia IHL Centre in meetings and public events and fielding questions
• Supporting the manager in high-level representations
• Providing clarification on the law to various stakeholders, in the context of the IHL Centre’s “helpdesk” function
• Contributing to the identification of future research and other activities for the Desk
• Assisting in planning, monitoring and evaluation of the Jerusalem Desk’s activities

Experience and Qualifications

Minimum

• Degree in law with specialization in IHL (or substantial, demonstrated training or professional experience in IHL) or related fields of international law, in particular international human rights law
• Knowledge of the law of occupation
• Excellent command of Arabic
• Excellent command of written and spoken English, including legal drafting skills
• Familiarity with the Israeli-Palestinian context
• Demonstrated capacity to conduct advanced legal research and analysis independently
• Demonstrated capacity to draft high quality legal texts in English
• Strong communication skills, including demonstrated proficiency in public speaking
• Five years of experience working in the field of human rights or IHL
• Willingness and ability to work in a multicultural team

Desirable

• Pedagogical skills and experience in teaching IHL
• Familiarity with the Palestinian civil society landscape
• Working knowledge of Hebrew
• Knowledge of European Union law

Salary, Location and Duration

This is a full-time staff position with the Diakonia IHL Centre, subject to an initial three-month trial period. The Legal Advisor will work from the IHL Centre’s office in Beit Hanina, Jerusalem.

Remuneration for this position is calculated in accordance with a competitive salary range based on qualifications and experience. If the Legal Advisor travels for any work purpose, all costs will be covered by Diakonia.