معرفی
Professor Michelle Burgis-Kasthala is a distinguished academic at the University of Edinburgh's School of Law, holding the position of Professor of International Law and Global Governance. She serves as Co-Director of the Centre for International and Global Law and is affiliated with the Global Justice Academy. Joining the Law School in September 2013, she previously spent five years as a lecturer in International Law and Middle East Studies at the University of St Andrews' School of International Relations.
Her research centers on the operation and contestation of international law across the Arab World, with particular expertise in Palestine, state-building, and human rights. Her scholarly work critically examines the intersections of international law, sovereignty, and colonial legacies, with increasing focus on Gaza, international criminal justice, and decolonial approaches to legal scholarship. She teaches public international law and international human rights law, bringing her research insights directly into the classroom.
Professor Burgis-Kasthala's recent publications (2023-2025) demonstrate a profound engagement with contemporary challenges in international law, particularly regarding Palestine, Gaza, and accountability mechanisms. Her work spans traditional academic articles, web publications, book reviews, and commentaries in leading platforms like EJIL: Talk! and Voelkerrechtsblog. She has developed a distinctive approach that combines critical legal theory with empirical analysis of international law's operation in the Middle East.
Her research output reveals evolving trends from earlier work on Arab statehood and territorial disputes toward more contemporary analyses of ungovernance, carceral systems, and the limitations of international legal discourse in addressing situations like Gaza. She increasingly engages with decolonial and abolitionist perspectives in international criminal law, challenging conventional approaches to justice and accountability.
Professor Burgis-Kasthala maintains active scholarly engagement through her role as Co-Director of the Centre for International and Global Law, where she likely contributes to research initiatives, workshops, and collaborative projects examining global legal challenges. Her work bridges academic scholarship with real-world legal and political challenges, particularly in the Middle East context.
