The principal drafter of Iraq's interim constitution, Feisal Istrabadi, will teach courses at the Indiana University School of Law -- Bloomington for the 2007-2008 academic year.

Istrabadi is a 1988 alumnus of IU and worked as a lawyer with the Valparaiso firm of Blachly Tabor Bozik & Hartman.

Ambassador Istrabadi, deputy permanent representative of Iraq to the United Nations in New York joins the IU School of Law -- Bloomington as a visiting professor. While the law school will be his primary academic home, he also will work with the School of Public and Environmental Affairs and with the Center for Global Change and World Peace.

"Ambassador Istrabadi brings to our students a unique perspective on issues of justice in transitional and post-conflict societies," said Lauren Robel, dean of the IU School of Law -- Bloomington in a written statement. "His experiences will strengthen and broaden our Center on Constitutional Democracy in Plural Societies, which focuses on rule of law and constitutional issues in fragile states. We are delighted to welcome him back to his alma mater."

Istrabadi, has lived in the United States since he was 8. His parents, Rasoul and Amel, immigrated here two years after Saddam Hussein came to power. He lived in Bloomington and earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry and a law degree at Indiana University.