Al-Haq International Law Summer School Program 2023

12th - 24th June 2023 (in Palestine)

18th - 26th July 2023 (Online)

(Please read this announcement thoroughly before submitting your application)

The Al-Haq Center for Applied International Law is excited to announce its Summer School Program for 2023. The program is designed for law graduates, legal researchers and professionals in the fields of international law and human rights and relevant fields. Candidates to this year program will have the option to participate in the on-site program in Palestine or in the online program version. The first, Al-Haq International Law Summer School on-site, will take place for a period of two weeks in Ramallah - Palestine, starting on 12th June, and concluding on the 24th June 2023. The second, Al-Haq International Law Summer School online, will start on the 18th of July and conclude on the 26th of July 2023, allowing participation of those professionals that cannot travel to the country.

The summer school adheres to assist professionals in developing a coherent understanding of the legal and human rights situation in Palestine, while closely observing and exchanging on the main violations committed against the Palestinian people. The summer school offers lectures, discussions and field visits provided by human rights professionals, civil society organizations and human rights defenders on key human rights themes and trends in relation to the Palestinian people as whole. Various learning methods and tools both in offices and in field are applied across the program. Participants will have the opportunity to exchange with diverse number of lecturers, communities and sites (on-site or virtually). Both programs will run in English.    

Al-Haq’s summer school is a unique opportunity for professionals interested in the Palestinian context, the history and the future of the Palestinian people to achieve their inalienable rights.

The International Law Summer School Program includes sessions on the following themes:

Historical overview of the Palestinian context;

International human rights law framework applicable to the Palestinian people;

International humanitarian law applicable to the occupied Palestinian territory;

Field visits and exchanges with communities;

International accountability mechanisms;

Human Rights of specific groups; such as women and children.

For more information about the Al-Haq Center for Applied International Law and the International Law Summer School program, please see the introductory video here.

Please note, Al-Haq has launched the first summer school in 2015, since then, every year Al-Haq hosts a group of participants in Palestine. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Al-Haq has also introduced an online program to allow for remote participation. Each year, the topics and themes vary depending on the availability of speakers and relevant developments on the ground, making the annual program unique. 

Al-Haq, is an independent Palestinian non-governmental human rights organization based in Ramallah, Palestine and established in 1979. Al-Haq’s mission is to protect and promote human rights and the rule of law in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Al-Haq documents violations of the individual and collective rights of Palestinians in the OPT, irrespective of the identity of the perpetrator, and seeks to end such breaches by way of advocacy before national and international mechanisms and by holding the violators accountable. For more information on Al-Haq, please visit our website.

The program will cover all participants’ accommodation costs, travel inside the country for program purposes, including airport pickups, and two meals during hours of the program; breakfast and lunch.

For the on-site program, participants need to cover the expenses of their own flights, travel insurance, and any other additional costs, such as dinner and accommodation outside of the program. Besides, participants are expected to cover a tuition fee of 300 USD upon arrival in Ramallah in cash, and bank transfers cannot be accepted. Some scholarships might be available to exempt participants who cannot provide the tuition fee, and will be granted on a case-by-case basis. If you need the scholarship or you have to apply for visa in advance, please inform us directly upon the submission of your application. The online program is free of charge.

Participants will be provided accommodation in shared rooms (2 or 3 single-beds rooms). If you wish to stay in a room individually, additional costs might apply.

Selected applicants will be provided reading material and other relevant documents ahead of the program start. Participants who complete the program will receive a certificate upon completion.

Application process:

A limited number of applicants will be accepted to both the on-site and the online programs. Interested applicants need to send an updated professional resume (CV) and a cover letter, elaborating on their professional and personal experience in relation to Palestine and/or international law and their interest to join the program, to the email address: ([email protected]). When submitting their application, candidates need to state the program version they wish to apply to in the title of their email. All applicants will be contacted to be informed of the result of their application. Please note, candidates who do not submit a full application will be rejected.

Candidates wishing to apply to the on-site version of the program are encouraged to send their applications no later than 20th April 2023. Applicants will be informed of the result of their application by late April.

Candidates wishing to apply to the online version of the program are encouraged to send their applications no later than 15th May 2023. Applicants will be informed of the result of their application by late May.

Disclaimer: Al-Haq cannot guarantee participants access to the country, and bears no responsibility regarding the behavior or actions taken by the Israeli authorities. We advise participants to inform themselves on entry regulations concerning the designation by Israel of the 6 prominent human rights and civil society organizations.

If you require any additional information or clarification, do not hesitate to contact us directly at the Al-Haq Center for Applied International Law’s email: [email protected].