US Sanctions UN Expert Francesca Albanese Over Israel Criticism

Geneva, MINA – The administration of US President Donald Trump has imposed sanctions on Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, over her reports documenting Israel’s abuses against Palestinians during the ongoing war on Gaza, Al Jazeera reported.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the sanctions on Wednesday, accusing Albanese of launching a “campaign of political and economic warfare against the United States and Israel.” Rubio claimed Albanese’s push for prosecuting Israeli officials at the International Criminal Court (ICC) served as the legal basis for the penalties.

Albanese appeared to dismiss the sanctions, referring to them as “mafia-style intimidation techniques” and emphasizing her continued focus on reminding states of their obligations to stop and punish acts of genocide.

Earlier the same day, she criticized European governments for allowing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is wanted by the ICC on war crimes charges, to use their airspace while traveling. She wrote on social media that every political decision undermining international law “weakens and endangers all of them. And all of us.”

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The sanctions freeze Albanese’s US assets and bar her and her family from entering the country. The move is part of an executive order Trump signed in February to sanction ICC officials targeting Israel, which also resulted in penalties against four ICC judges last month.

Albanese has faced years of criticism from Israel and its supporters, who have demanded her removal from her UN post. She has become one of the most vocal global advocates calling for accountability over Israel’s treatment of Palestinians.

Nancy Okail, president of the Center for International Policy (CIP), condemned the sanctions, describing them as a sign that the US is behaving “like dictatorships.” Amnesty International’s secretary general Agnes Callamard expressed dismay, underscoring that special rapporteurs are independent and must not be pressured to align with government agendas.

Callamard called on other governments to mitigate the sanctions’ effects and protect Albanese’s mandate, describing her as tirelessly documenting Israel’s “unlawful occupation, apartheid and genocide.”

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According to local health authorities, Israel’s US-backed military campaign in Gaza has killed at least 57,575 Palestinians over the past 21 months and devastated much of the territory. []

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)

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