Actor and human rights activist George Clooney is reportedly engaged to international lawyer Amal Alamuddin.
Rumors started swirling Saturday when Clooney and Alamuddin were spotted having dinner at a Malibu, CA restaurant with Clooney’s longtime friends Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber. Observers reported that Alamuddin was wearing a “huge ring” on her left ring finger as the two couples dined at Nobu, a trendy Japanese restaurant located on the scenic Pacific Coast Highway.
Clooney and Alamuddin were first spotted together in London last October.
Clooney was in town filming The Monuments Men when he and Alamuddin met for dinner at Berners Tavern in The London Edition Hotel. At the time Clooney was rumored to be dating the London-based Croatian model Monika Jakisic.
On February 18 Clooney took Alamuddin to a special White House screening of The Monuments Men.
In March Clooney and Alamuddin were spotted on the beach in Seychelles and on a safari in Tanzania. Later that month the two were seen dining with friends in both New York City and Studio City, CA.
Who exactly is Alamuddin?
Unlike Clooney’s ex-wife Talia Balsam and ex-girlfriend Stacy Keibler, Alamuddin isn’t an actress.
In fact, she’s an accomplished and award-winning international lawyer who often works on human rights cases.
The British attorney attended Oxford University and New York University School of Law. She practiced law in New York City for several years, representing big-name clients such as Enron and Arthur Andersen. Later she famously represented Wikileaks founder Julian Assange in his extradition proceedings with Sweden.
Alamuddin and Clooney likely find common ground in their passion for human rights.
Clooney is almost as well-known for his humanitarian work and political activism as for his A-list movies. Along with Don Cheadle, Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, and several others Clooney founded Not On Our Watch, a non-profit whose goal is to “focus global attention and resources towards putting an end to mass atrocities around the world.”
They look great! MT @GMA @LaraSpencer has behind-the-scenes access to this lucky woman's date night with Clooney! pic.twitter.com/iNFoLG1Smq
— Enough Project (@EnoughProject) February 5, 2014
Clooney has advocated tirelessly for the marginalized in such places as Chad, Haiti, and Sudan.
Alamuddin, who speaks fluent Arabic, English, and French, specializes in extradition, human rights, and international law. Currently based in London, she has represented clients in legal cases before the European Court of Human Rights, the International Court of Justice, and the International Criminal Court.
Back in October, Clooney’s rep claimed that Clooney and Alamuddin were discussing a satellite surveillance program over Syria during their dinner at Berners Tavern.
Alamuddin is an appointed advisor to former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, who currently serves as the United Nations Arab League envoy to Syria.
#TBT: On March 16, 2012 George Clooney spoke at the rally for peace in #Sudan. http://t.co/SZcpnXqdPO
— Enough Project (@EnoughProject) August 15, 2013
Many who are working to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Syria would be thrilled if Alamuddin could convince Clooney to lend his star power to the situation there.
“The authentic involvement of cultural icons helps form a movement, and that makes Syria more than some distant quagmire,” Mercy Corps chief development and communications officer Jeremy Barnicle said in January.
Image via Wikimedia Commons