The United Nations has voiced strong opposition to the United States' decision to impose sanctions on Francesca Albanese, its special rapporteur investigating alleged human rights violations in the occupied Palestinian territories.
UN Secretary-General spokesperson St&eacute;phane Dujarric said the move sets a "dangerous precedent," warning that targeting independent human rights experts undermines the UN&rsquo;s human rights system.
&ldquo;Member states can disagree with special rapporteurs&rsquo; findings, but imposing unilateral sanctions is unacceptable,&rdquo; Dujarric said. He clarified that these experts are appointed by the UN Human Rights Council and operate independently of the UN Secretary-General.
The US sanctioned Albanese for her role in examining Israeli military actions in Gaza, which Washington claims are unfairly targeting its ally. The move aligns with a 2020 Trump-era executive order aimed at punishing international bodies that investigate US or Israeli conduct.
The UN reiterated that political pressure on independent investigators threatens the credibility of global human rights oversight.
[Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by the Benefit News editorial team and is published directly from the IANS news feed.]

UN Slams US Sanctions on Gaza War Crimes Investigator

Sanctioning UN expert Francesca Albanese for probing Israel sets a dangerous global precedent

UN Slams US Sanctions on Gaza War Crimes Investigator

Sanctioning UN expert Francesca Albanese for probing Israel sets a dangerous global precedent

July 11, 2025 | 14:23 IST