Alkarama expresses deep concern and strongly condemns the unjust sanctions imposed by the government of the United States of America against Ms. Francesca Albanese, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories. These measures follow her latest report, in which she courageously and responsibly exposed the systematic crimes committed by Israel against the Palestinian people, as well as the active complicity of major Western corporations profiting from this ongoing genocidal war.
These sanctions are part of a continuing series of pressures and attacks orchestrated by the Israeli government and its allies against free voices and committed consciences within the UN system, in a vain and desperate attempt to silence those who denounce serious violations and expose the falsity of their narratives.
Targeting a UN expert is an act of arrogance
Targeting a Special Rapporteur solely for independently carrying out her mandate and fulfilling her obligations under international law illustrates the pressures exerted by Western states, foremost among them the United States of America. Through such practices, they lose all moral and legal legitimacy to claim to defend humanitarian values and human rights. In reality, they become instruments of oppression, trampling on the principles of international law and human rights, while displaying blind support for the Israeli occupying state and openly encouraging its impunity.
In this context, Alkarama reaffirms its full solidarity with Ms. Albanese and praises her courage for exposing these crimes despite the smear campaigns and threats she faces. It should be noted that the U.S. approach is not an isolated case: it is part of a series of similar attacks, notably against the International Criminal Court, aimed at intimidating international bodies and deterring them from fulfilling their mission to prosecute war criminals. In this regard, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr. Volker Türk, recently condemned these sanctions, describing them as a dangerous precedent threatening the foundations of the international system based on legality and legitimacy.
In her latest report, Ms. Francesca Albanese highlighted the involvement of international companies in what she terms the “economy of genocide” in Palestine, marking a major turning point in revealing the extent of institutional support for the Israeli aggression. During her address to the United Nations Human Rights Council, Ms. Albanese denounced the support of certain states for Israel’s project of hegemony and expulsion of Palestinians and called for the suspension of all trade agreements with Israel that fuel this “genocidal war” in Gaza.
She also revealed that international arms companies supplied Israel with 35,000 tons of explosives used in the Gaza Strip, an explosive power equivalent to six times that of the nuclear bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
The report also highlights the role of companies such as Microsoft, Alphabet (Google), and Amazon in providing the Israeli army with sophisticated surveillance and espionage systems. It further mentions the involvement of arms companies like Lockheed Martin, as well as firms specializing in heavy equipment and engineering.
U.S. sanctions: A violation of international law
It is important to emphasize that these U.S. measures constitute a blatant violation of international agreements protecting Special Rapporteurs and independent experts, notably the “Host Country Agreement” concluded in 1946 between the UN and the host state, which guarantees full immunity and independence of officials and experts in the exercise of their functions, prohibiting any form of pressure, threat, or sanction against them.
These actions also contravene the legal obligations enshrined in the United Nations Charter, particularly articles 100 and 105, which ensure the independence of international officials and experts and forbid any attempts by member states to influence or retaliate against them because of their reports or positions.
Alkarama calls on the international community, UN bodies, and all human rights defenders to strongly condemn these measures, demand the immediate lifting of the sanctions and guarantee the protection of UN Rapporteurs so they can carry out their missions with full freedom and independence, free from any form of blackmail or political pressure.
Furthermore, Alkarama holds Western states, especially the United States of America, fully morally and legally responsible for the consequences of this targeting and urges them to review their policies, which entrench double standards and undermine their credibility before the peoples of the world.