Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Wednesday that the US was imposing sanctions on Francesca Albanese, a UN special rapporteur who is very critical of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories and its genocidal war in the West Bank.
The sanctions come after Albanese issued a report titled “From Economy of Occupation to Economy of Genocide” that called out dozens of private companies, including several US tech firms, that she says are involved in supporting Israel’s violence against Palestinians.
“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 U.S. and Israeli officials, companies, and executives,” Rubio wrote on X.
“Albanese’s campaign of political and economic warfare against the United States and Israel will no longer be tolerated. We will always stand by our partners in their right to self-defense,” he added.
The US has previously called for the UN to end Albanese’s mandate as the special rapporteur for the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
“The United States once again expressed its grave concerns to UN Secretary-General António Guterres about the continued activities of Francesca Albanese … and again called upon the Secretary-General to condemn her activities and call for her removal,” the US mission to the UN said in a statement on July 1.
The US mission accused Albanese of “virulent antisemitism” for her criticism of Israel. The Biden administration also smeared Albanese as an antisemite after she authored a report accusing Israel of genocide.
