The CIA’s new chief legal officer has a record of defending Israel at the International Court of Justice, the principal United Nations court in The Hague, and helping negotiate a treaty between the United States and France on Holocaust compensation claims.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe named Joshua Simmons as the spy agency’s general counsel on Tuesday.
“Josh brings an impressive record and the expertise to advance the president’s priorities at the agency,” Ratcliffe stated. “He will be a valuable asset to our leadership team, in addition to playing a key role in strengthening CIA.”
Simmons came to the CIA from legal roles in the U.S. State Department. In April, he represented the United States at a hearing of the International Court of Justice on whether Israel was obligated to support the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees to provide aid to Gaza during the Israel-Hamas war.
“This week, many speakers have focused on the factual circumstances of that conflict. They have voiced significant concerns about the flow of humanitarian assistance into Gaza,” Simmons argued. “You have heard little, however, about the serious and credible concerns about Hamas misusing UNRWA facilities and humanitarian assistance.”
“You have also heard little of Israel’s security needs after the terrorist attacks on Oct. 7, 2023,” he said.
Simmons, who is also a published author of young-adult novels, described himself in a 2013 interview as a Christian.
His LinkedIn profile says that in 2014, he helped in the “negotiation of a treaty with France regarding Holocaust deportation claims.”
That treaty “reached an agreement for substantial compensation in connection with the wrongs suffered by Holocaust victims deported from France” and was “expected to result in payments to several thousand U.S. citizens and others around the world.”
