Dr Mohamed ElBaradei
ElBaradei earned a Bachelor's degree in law from the University of Cairo in 1962, followed by a DEA degree in International Law at the Graduate Institute of International Studies HEI in Geneva and a Ph. D in International Law at the New York University School of Law in 1974. His diplomatic career began in 1964 in the Egyptian Ministry of External affairs, where he served in the Permanent Missions of Egypt to the United Nations in New York and in Geneva, in charge of political, legal, and arms control issues. From 1974 to 1978 he was a special assistant to the Egyptian Foreign Minister. In 1980, he became a senior fellow in charge of the international law program at the United Nations Institute for Training and Research. From 1981 to 1987 he was also an Adjunct Professor of International Law at New York University School of Law.
In 1984, ElBaradei became a senior staff member of the IAEA Secretariat, serving as the Agency's legal adviser (1984 to 1993) and Assistant Director General for External Relations (1993 to 1997).
ElBaradei is also a member of the International Law Association and the American Society of International Law. He is married to Aida Elkachef, an early childhood teacher. They have a daughter, Laila, a lawyer, married to Neil Pizey, an investment banker - who live in London - and a son, Mostafa, an IT manager, who lives in Cairo.
2005 Nobel Peace Prize
On October 7, 2005, ElBaradei and the IAEA itself were announced as joint recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize for their "efforts to prevent nuclear energy from being used for military purposes and to ensure that nuclear energy for peaceful purposes is used in the safest possible way". This implicitly disavowed criticism of them since the second Allied-Iraqi Gulf war, and especially the failed US-led attempt to deny ElBaradei a third term in office. ElBaradei donated all his winnings to building orphanages in his home city of Cairo. The IAEA's winnings are being spent on training scientists from developing countries to use nuclear techniques in combating cancer and malnutrition.
