Commentary
“We Escaped from Prison, Just to be Put in Another Prison”
Published in
Al Jazeera
Belkis Wille
Belkis Wille, senior Iraq researcher in the Middle East and North Africa division, investigates human rights abuses in Iraq. She produces detailed reports, news releases, and op-eds based on her findings and conducts local and international advocacy. Before taking up this position, she was the Yemen and Kuwait researcher, based in Sanaa, for three and a half years. Previously, Wille worked at the Geneva-based World Organisation Against Torture, leading its Middle East and North Africa work from Tunisia and carrying out advocacy and trainings on torture prevention in Libya. In 2011, Wille was a consultant to the International Commission of Jurists in Geneva. In 2009, she documented alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity with the Al Mezan Center for Human Rights in Gaza. At a London solicitor’s firm, she subsequently helped bring these cases to UK courts under universal jurisdiction. Wille received her bachelor’s degree from Harvard University, her graduate diploma in law from City University London, and her LLM in human rights and humanitarian law from the University of Essex. She speaks English, German, French, and Arabic.