On Wednesday, July 9, the Trump administration announced sanctions against a UN-appointed independent investigator assigned to monitor human rights violations in the Palestinian territories.
The U.S. State Department’s decision to sanction Francesca Albanese, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation in the West Bank and Gaza, came after unsuccessful pressure by the U.S. to have her removed from her position.
This happened as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was in Washington this week for meetings with President Donald Trump and other officials to discuss the Gaza war and other regional matters.
It remains unclear what concrete impact the sanctions will have, or whether the investigator will be allowed to enter the United States using her diplomatic passport, according to Euronews.
Albanese, an Italian human rights lawyer, has been vocal in accusing Israel of committing what she described as “genocide” against Palestinians in Gaza. Israel and its ally the U.S., which provides Israel with military aid, have strongly rejected those claims.
The United States had not previously raised official complaints against Albanese publicly, having boycotted both recent sessions of the UN Human Rights Council this year, including the one held this summer that ended on Tuesday.
This is because Trump’s administration withdrew the U.S. from the Human Rights Council earlier this year.
