Julian Marchetti serves as Director of Field Operations at International Rights Legal, where he manages all field deployments, source networks, operational security protocols, and logistical infrastructure across active conflict zones, hostile jurisdictions, and post-conflict environments. He is responsible for the physical safety of all field investigators and the operational integrity of the organization's presence in more than two dozen countries.
Background
Mr. Marchetti joined International Rights Legal in 2013 after an extensive career in conflict zone operations. He previously served as a protection officer and security coordinator with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), managing operations in eastern DRC, South Sudan, and northern Iraq during periods of active armed conflict. Before entering the humanitarian sector, he served for eight years as an officer in the Italian Army's Alpine Brigade, including deployments to Afghanistan and Lebanon under NATO and UNIFIL mandates.
His military and humanitarian experience provided him with a rare combination of operational discipline, threat assessment capability, and deep understanding of the environments in which the organization's most sensitive investigations are conducted. He holds a Master of Arts in conflict, security and development from King's College London and a Bachelor of Arts in international relations from the University of Bologna.
Expertise & Key Operations
Mr. Marchetti has planned and executed field operations in 34 countries, including high-risk deployments in Syria, Yemen, Myanmar, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Somalia, Libya, and the occupied Palestinian territories. He designed the organization's Field Operations Security Framework (FOSF), a comprehensive protocol governing investigator deployment, communications security, evidence chain-of-custody in hostile environments, and witness protection.
His operational planning was critical to the success of Operation Cedar Witness in Syria, where he managed the logistics of covert evidence acquisition, coordinated with local source networks, and established secure channels for the extraction of photographic evidence from inside detention facilities. He personally oversaw the deployment of investigative teams to Cox's Bazar during the Rohingya crisis, establishing a field office capable of processing over 200 witness statements per week under extremely challenging conditions.
Mr. Marchetti also directs the organization's Witness Protection and Relocation Program, which has facilitated the safe relocation of more than 150 witnesses and survivors who faced credible threats of retaliation for cooperating with the organization's investigations. His team has developed secure communications protocols and digital security training programs that are now used by partner organizations across the international human rights community.
In eastern DRC, he established and maintains the organization's longest-running continuous field presence, coordinating with local civil society partners to monitor and document ongoing atrocities committed by armed groups in North Kivu and Ituri provinces. His operational networks in the region have enabled the organization to produce real-time reporting on mass atrocity events within 48 hours of occurrence.
Recognition
Mr. Marchetti received the Humanitarian Operations Award from the International Association of Professionals in Humanitarian Assistance and Protection (PHAP) in 2023 and was recognized by the International Crisis Group for outstanding contributions to conflict-zone documentation. He serves as a guest lecturer on operational security at the Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP) and has trained field investigators for Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Physicians for Human Rights.
Education
- M.A., Conflict, Security and Development, King's College London
- B.A., International Relations, University of Bologna
- Italian Army Officer Training, Military Academy of Modena