US sanctions UN human rights expert critical of Israel’s war in Gaza
Francesca Albanese, who has called Israel’s Gaza war ‘genocidal’, dismisses US sanctions as ‘mafia style intimidation’
The United States said on Wednesday it was imposing sanctions on Francesca Albanese, the United Nations’ special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, who has been very critical of US ally Israel’s war in Gaza.
“Today I am imposing sanctions on UN Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese for her illegitimate and shameful efforts to prompt (International Criminal Court) action against US and Israeli officials, companies, and executives,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.
In a post on X late on Wednesday, Albanese wrote that she stood “firmly and convincingly on the side of justice, as I have always done”, without directly mentioning the US sanctions. In a text message to Al Jazeera, she was quoted as dismissing the US move as “mafia style intimidation techniques”.
Albanese, an Italian lawyer and academic, has called on states at the UN Human Rights Council to impose an arms embargo and cut off trade and financial ties with Israel while accusing the US ally of waging a “genocidal campaign” in Gaza.
Israel has faced accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice and of war crimes at the ICC over its devastating military assault on Gaza. Israel denies the accusations and says its campaign amounts to self defence after a deadly October 2023 Hamas attack.