School of Law, Gender and Media

Professor Mohammad Karoubi

Key information

Roles
School of Law, Gender and Media Professorial Research Associate
Qualifications
LLB (Tehran University) LLM and PhD (Hull University)
Building
Paul Webley Wing (Senate House)
Email address
mk121@soas.ac.uk

Biography

Mohammad Karoubi is a Professor of International Law. He holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Tehran and a Masters and Doctorate from Hull University.

He has taught in a number of different universities, at both undergraduate and post graduate levels. He has published a number of books and articles in both English and Farsi focusing mainly on international law, human rights in Islam, cyber law and law and bioethics.

Professor Karoubi is the author of the book entitled Just or Unjust War? International Law and Unilateral Use of Force by States at the Turn of 20th Century.

In 2004 – 2007 he was the director of the Centre for Legal Research in the  Persian Study Institute. During that time, he established the first Iranian Cyber Law Research Centre for Legal Aspects of Cyber Environment. The centre was brought together by number of legal scholars to discuss various legal issues such as privacy in the processing and transferring of personal data, legal aspects of e-commerce, intellectual property law, civil liability, freedom of information in cyber space and eligibility. From January 2005 to March 2007 Mohammad Karoubi was the director of two national projects related to the right to privacy in processing and communication of personal data and the protection of individuals’ data with regard to the processing of the data and the free movement of such data. The outputs of the projects presented two bills in the Iranian Parliament including:

  • The First Draft of the Iranian Data Protection Bill; and
  • The Right to Privacy in Electronic Communication (known as Privacy Bill).

Currently, Karoubi is writing a book in relation to the use of force in the light of new technologies such as drones against non-state actors and the challenges and problems that this type of armed conflict represents to the traditional public international law regime. In this work Karoubi tries to examine the legality or illegality of the use of force against hostile non-state actors in the territory of another state. He presented the first draft of this work at Institute for Global Law & Policy (IGLIP), Harvard Law School which brought together a group of European and non-European “semi-peripheral” international lawyers for discussion about the legality of the wars against crime and terror. 

Karoubi has also given interviews on numerous occasions to various national and international medias on legal and political issues relating to the Middle East, most notably Iran. In the last 5 years he has been interviewed by CNN, Euronews, BBC World Service, News Night, BBC Radio 4, AFP, BBC Persia Service and VOA. 

BOOKS:

  • Just or Unjust War? International Law and Unilateral Use o f Force by States at the Turn of 20th Century, Ashgate Publishing Limited, Aldershot, UK, September 2004, 278 pp.
  • EU and the Question of the Personal Data Protection, Bogheh Press, Tehran, 2006, 478 pp.
  • Legal Aspects of Cyber Space in the Light of National Development (edited collection with S.M. Sadri), Bogheh Press, Tehran, 2006, 202 pp.
  • ICT in Iranian Laws and Regulations, (edited collection with S.M. Sadri and A. Naeni), Bogheh Press, Tehran, 2006, 924 pp.
  • Towards an International Bioethics Law, (edited collection), Avicenna Press, Tehran June 2014.
  • The Legal Regime of the Strait of Hormuz in Persian Gulf, Editorial work on the text of the book was completed and it has been passed to the production department. The publisher is scheduled to have printed copies of the book by October 2017.

ARTICLES

  • Unilateral Use of Armed Force and the Challenge of Humanitarian Intervention in International Law, 10 Asian Yearbook of International Law, Koninklijke Brill NV. Netherlands, 2005, pp. 95-124.
  • Human Rights and the Challenge of Humanitarian Interventions, 6 Human Rights Law and Practice, New Zealand, February 2003.pp.269-281.
  • A Critical Examination of Iranian Act (2003) Related to Embryo Donation in Infertile Spouses, 7 Iranian Journal of Reproductive Medicine, Winter 2009.
  • The Religious Response to ART: A Case Study of Islamic Republic of Iran, European Association of Centres of Medical Ethics, Maastricht, 2009.
  • "How Does Iranian's Legal System Protect Human Vulnerability and Personal Integrity in Medical Research", 3 AJMB, April 2011.
  • “The Principle of Respect for Human Vulnerability and Personal Integrity in Medical Research”, Journal of Medical Ethics and History of Medicine, Tehran University, March 2012.
  • “Embryo Donation in Iranian Legal System, A Critical Review”, Journal of Reproduction & Infertility, March 2015.
  • “International Legal Tools to Regulate Scientific Activities in the Field of Human Cloning”, 11 PAYESH, January 2012, 407-423.
  • “National Health in the Light of Iranian Constitution and Human Rights”, in Infertility and Insurance, Avicenna Press, 2008, pp. 24-33.
  • “Human Rights in the Light of Humanitarian Intervention Doctrine in the Third Millennium”, 181 Iranian Bar Journal, 2002, pp 320-355.
  • “Comments on the Iranian Conscription Law”, 4 Quarterly Journal of Youth Studies, 2003, pp.145-161.
  • “The Right to Privacy in Electronic Communication”, in Legal Aspects of Cyber Space in the Light of National Development (edited by M.T. Karoubi and S.M Sadri), Bogha Press, Tehran, (2005), pp. 75-105.
  • “Digital Signature in Germany and the United States”, in Legal Aspects of Cyber Space in the Light of National Development (edited by M.T. Karoubi and S.M Sadri), Bogha Press, Tehran, (2005).

BOOK REVIEWS

  • Just War or Just Peace, by S. Chesterman, (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2001) in Asian Yearbook of International Law, Vol. 8 (2005), PP.495-496.
  • International Law and the Use of Force, by G. Christine, (Oxford University Press, Oxford and New York 2000), in Asian Yearbook of International Law, Vol. 8 (2005).

PUBLIC LECTURES/SEMINAR PAPERS DELIVERED

  • “Non-State Actors and the Question of Unilateral Use of Force against Terrorists: American and Iranian Perspectives”, Glasgow University, School of Law, 21 January 2013.
  • “International Law and the Question of Use of Force against Non-State Actors”, a paper presented at the University of Harvard, Law School, Institute for Global Law & Policy on June 4, 2012.
  • “Islamic Law and the Principle of Respect for Human Vulnerability and Personal Integrity in Medical Research and Practice”, 2nd International Congress of Bioethics with Emphasis on Morality, Spirituality and Creationism, Tehran 22 November 2011.
  • “What Should International Law Responses be to the Question of Human Cloning?”, 10th Conference of Law, Ethic and Human Genome, 18 April 2010, Shahid Beheshti University.
  • UNESCO Conference, 16 Session of the International Bioethics Committee of UNESCO, November 25- 27, Mexico City, 2009.
  • “The Persian Nuclear Dossier: Assessing the United Nations Security Council Sanctions”, a public lecture at the University of Science and Culture on 20 April 2009.
  • “The Religious Response to Reproductive Technology: A Case Study of Islamic Republic of Iran”, EACME Conference, Venice University, September 11, 2009.
  • “The Current Status of Iranian National Heath in the Light of the Constitution”, in Infertility and Insurance, Avicenna Research Centre, December 2008, Tehran, Iran.
  • “Prisoner’s Rights in the Light of International Human Rights Law: A Critique of the Law and Practice of Iran”, at the Faculty of Law, University of Tehran on 12 May 2005.
  • “Legitimacy or Illegitimacy of Unilateral Use of Force by the US and the UK Against Iraq”, a seminar presentation at Leeds, November 2004.
  • “The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and Iran’s Nuclear Programme: Duties and Obligations”, a seminar presentation at Law School, Hull University, December 2004.
  • “A Critical Examination of Embryo Donation to Infertile Spouses Act 2003”, sponsored by the University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran.
  • “The UN Response to International Terrorism and the Problem of the Definition of Terrorism in International law”, a seminar presentation at the Law School, Nottingham, 14 February 2003.
  • “Just War Doctrine in the Light of Recent Crisis”, a public lecture at the Jahad Institute of Higher Education on 12 April 2003.
  • “International Law and the Legal Regime of the Strait of Hormuz in Persian Gulf”, a public lecture at MacCoubery Study Institute on 7 December 2003.
  • “Obligations and Responsibilities of the US and the UK in Iraq under International Law”, a Public lecture at Law School, University of Science and Culture on 12 April 2003.
  • “The Idea of Just War in Christian Tradition”, a public lecture at Social Science Research Institute, Tehran, on 14 May 2003.
  • “The Idea of Just War: Secular Approach”, a public lecture at Social Science Research Institute, Tehran, on 21 May 2003.
  • “Were NATO’s Actions in Kosovo Lawful? a seminar presentation at Manchester University, April 2000.
  • “Does a State have a Right to Intervene in the Affairs of Another State on the Ground of Democracy and Human Rights?”, a seminar presentation at Manchester University on 6 March 1999.

 

Research interests

Interests/Disciplines
  • International Human Rights Law
  • Human Rights in Islam
  • Public International Law
  • International Law of Armed Conflict
Research
  • The use of force against non-state actors and the challenges and problems that this type of armed conflict represents to the traditional public international law regime.
  •  
    The concepts of international human rights law in the light of the Islamic criminal system and the perception of “Islamic justice”, as it has re-emerged in Islamic countries applying Islamic law in their criminal justice system.
Expertise
  • Regional Expertise: Middle East
  • Country Expertise: Iran and Persian Gulf States

Contact Mohammad