The United States has announced sanctions against UN rapporteur Francesca Albanese
Environment — di Luigi Mastrodonato
Francesca Albanese is accused by the Trump administration of waging an economic and political campaign against the US and Israel.
The United States has announced sanctions against UN rapporteur Francesca Albanese
Francesca Albanese is accused by the Trump administration of waging an economic and political campaign against the US and Israel.
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced sanctions against Francesca Albanese.
- The sanctions are expected to include the freezing of assets in the US and a ban on entry.
- In recent days, Albanese had published a report on companies, including US ones, involved in the genocide in Gaza.
The United States, at the initiative of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, have announced sanctions against the UN Special Rapporteur for the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Francesca Albanese. The measures include the freezing of any personal assets in the US and a ban on entry into the country for her and her family members. The Trump administration has accused her of waging a political and economic campaign against the United States and Israel.
Albanese has long denounced the genocide of Israeli origin taking place in the Gaza Strip and the support that Israel's allied states, including the United States, are providing to the operation. Just a few days ago, Albanese had published a report highlighting how numerous companies, including some American ones, are profiting from the genocide.
Who is Francesca Albanese
Francesca Albanese is an Italian jurist specialising in human rights and the Middle East. Since May 2022 she has served as United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, an independent role that requires her to continuously assess the human rights situation in Palestinian territory and report it to the UN Human Rights Council. Over the years she has published numerous papers and essays on the Palestinian question, denouncing the apartheid and ethnic cleansing policies perpetrated by Israel and documenting the work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (Unrwa), with which she collaborated for a long time.
On 30 June, Albanese presented the report entitled From economy of occupation to economy of genocide, in which she exposed the network of companies and universities – including Elbit Systems, Lockheed Martin, Google, Amazon, Palantir, IBM, Caterpillar, Booking.com, Airbnb, BlackRock, Vanguard, BNP Paribas, Barclays – that have so far profited from the sale of weapons, technology, infrastructure and tourism linked to the occupation and genocide in Gaza.
In her study, Albanese speaks of a veritable "economy of genocide", in which the United States plays a key role, and she has called for divestment from Israel and for international sanctions, such as arms embargoes.
US Sanctions
On 9 July, just as Social Democrat MEP Matjaž Nemec was nominating her for the Nobel Peace Prize, the United States imposed sanctions on Francesca Albanese. The announcement came from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who accused her of holding antisemitic positions and of carrying out a campaign of political and economic warfare against the United States and Israel. Albanese is accused in particular of having supported the work of the International Criminal Court, which in recent months issued arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli political and military leaders. Since taking office, US President Donald Trump has rejected the authority of the Court.
Today I am imposing sanctions on UN Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese for her illegitimate and shameful efforts to prompt @IntlCrimCourt action against U.S. and Israeli officials, companies, and executives.
Albanese's campaign of political and economic
Albanese's campaign of political and economic
The sanctions include the freezing of Albanese's assets in the United States and a ban on entering the United States — a significant obstacle for someone who works at the UN, which is headquartered in New York. In 2024, Israel had already barred Albanese from entering the country, complicating her work. "This is a shameful and transparent attack on the fundamental principles of international justice," stressed Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International. For her part, Albanese described the sanctions as a form of mafia-style intimidation.