Professor Ruth Halperin-Kaddari is an expert on family law and international women's rights and is the Founding Academic Director of the Rackman Center for the Advancement of the Status of Women at Bar-Ilan University Law Faculty in Israel, where she serves as a Full Professor. In December 2018 she completed three terms (twelve years) on the UN Committee on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), during which she also served twice as the Vice-Chair of the Committee, and as the first Chair of the Working Group on Inquiries. A graduate of Yale Law School (LL.M.; J.S.D.), she is a renowned speaker in academic as well as professional forums and has published extensively in her areas of expertise, including a book on Women in Israel that was published by the University of Pennsylvania Press, and a co-edited 2nd edition of the CEDAW Commentary by Oxford University Press. She is a recipient of numerous research grants as well as international awards including the US States Department Women of Courage Award and the Human Rights Award 2024 of the Ingrid zu Solms-Stiftung Foundation in Germany, and in 2018 she was named one of Apolitical 100 most influential people in gender policy around the world. In June 2023 she was shortlisted for the OHCHR Working Group on Discrimination Against Women and Girls.

Halperin-Kaddari is committed to achieving justice and recognition for the victims of the sexual violence and gender-based atrocities executed by Hamas on Oct. 7. Since Oct. 8, she has been working endlessly to achieve this sole goal. Her reputation as a leading human rights defender and her experience on CEDAW has allowed her to navigate and gain access to international human rights bodies and Israeli authorities. She has held meetings with leading decision-makers, particularly at the UN – including with the High Commissioner for Human Rights Mr. Volker Turk. She was instrumental in securing the fact-finding mission in Israel by the UN Secretary General's Special Representative for Sexual Violence in Conflict, Ms. Pramila Patten. She has also given countless interviews to international media outlets, briefed ambassadors, gave presentations to missions, and held webinars with communities around the world.

About this Season of Israe in Depth

In this season of Israel In Depth, UCLA Y&S Nazarian Center scholars will discuss various facets of the unfolding Israel–Hamas War with a range of experts across disciplines and backgrounds to help listeners understand this conflict in all of its complexities.

DISCLAIMER: The views or opinions of our guest speakers and the content of their presentations do not necessarily reflect the views of the UCLA Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for Israel Studies. Hosting speakers does not constitute an endorsement of the speaker's views or opinions.