📍 Toronto, Canada — The Resurgence Network for Human Rights strongly condemns the recent sanctions announced by the United States against Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. This move is not only alarming—it is a disgraceful affront to international law and accountability.
Francesca Albanese was appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council to report independently on the grave human rights violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Gaza and the West Bank. Her work has been grounded in truth, evidence, and an unwavering commitment to international legal standards—even when those truths make powerful states uncomfortable.
🛑 These sanctions, spearheaded by U.S. officials just days after Albanese’s latest report exposed how corporations are profiting from Israel’s illegal occupation and systemic apartheid, are a politically motivated retaliation. Her findings, which shine a light on ongoing genocide in Gaza and the brutal conditions Palestinians face under occupation, deserve global attention—not punitive backlash.
“This is not just an attack on one UN expert—it is a dangerous assault on the global human rights system. It undermines every mechanism created to protect the oppressed, and every defender who speaks truth to power.”
— Resurgence Network for Human Rights
These sanctions come on the heels of U.S. measures against the International Criminal Court and represent a broader strategy to shield Israel from any accountability under international law. Rather than silencing human rights defenders, the U.S. should reckon with its own role in enabling systemic injustice through unconditional support for Israel and its militarized occupation of Palestine.