United Nations Condemns US Sanctions on Human Rights Expert as "Dangerous Precedent"

The United Nations condemned on Thursday, July 10, the unilateral sanctions imposed by the United States on former Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, describing the action as "unacceptable" and a "dangerous precedent".

This came in response to a decision by the administration of US President Donald Trump to impose sanctions on Albanese, whom the US State Department accused of "bias against Israel" and "anti-Semitism", according to a statement issued by the department.

Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said: "The use of unilateral sanctions against special rapporteurs or any other UN expert or official is unacceptable". He added that Albanese, appointed by the UN Human Rights Council, works independently, and the Secretary-General has no authority over her reports.

Dujarric emphasized the need to address disputes among member states within the framework of the United Nations, saying: "While member states have the right to disagree with independent expert reports, these disputes must be addressed through UN channels". He also called for distinguishing between "legitimate political criticism" of the Israeli government and "anti-Semitism".

On the other hand, the US State Department alleged that Albanese had been in contact with the International Criminal Court "to encourage investigations or arrest American or Israeli citizens without notifying the countries", according to a statement by Minister Marco Rubio, who described her as "unfit for service" due to what he described as "explicit anti-Semitism", "support for terrorism", and "disdain for the United States, Israel, and the West".

It is worth mentioning that Albanese, an Italian human rights expert, held the position of Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territories, an independent position appointed by the Human Rights Council in Geneva.