The US has imposed sanctions on United Nations expert Francesca Albanese, citing her documentation of Israeli abuses in Gaza during the ongoing conflict, Al Jazeera reports.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the sanctions on Wednesday, accusing Albanese of leading what he described as a “campaign of political and economic warfare against the United States and Israel.”
Albanese serves as the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967.
She has been a vocal critic of Israel’s actions in Gaza and has called for international accountability, including through legal avenues such as the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Israeli officials and some of their allies have repeatedly criticized Albanese over her work, with calls for her removal from the UN post intensifying in recent years.
When contacted by Al Jazeera, Albanese declined to comment directly on the US sanctions, instead stating that she remains focused on her mandate. “No comment on mafia-style intimidation techniques,” she wrote in a message. “Busy reminding member states of their obligations to stop and punish genocide. And those who profit from it.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Albanese criticized European governments for allowing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—who is facing an arrest warrant request at the ICC—to travel through their airspace.
In a social media post, she said, “Italian, French and Greek citizens deserve to know that every political action violating the [international] legal order, weakens and endangers all of them. And all of us.”
Rubio cited Albanese’s public support for ICC investigations into Israeli officials as one reason for the sanctions.
In February, US President Donald Trump had issued an executive order enabling penalties against ICC officials who were seen as targeting Israel.
Rubio also accused Albanese of anti-Semitism, saying, “That bias has been apparent across the span of her career, including recommending that the ICC, without a legitimate basis, issue arrest warrants targeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.”
The ICC recently filed charges against Netanyahu and Gallant, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including allegations of depriving civilians in Gaza of essential supplies such as food, water, and medicine.
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