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‘Dangerous Precedent’ – UN Condemns US Sanctions on Albanese
The United Nations has strongly criticized the US decision to impose sanctions on UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, warning that such actions against independent human rights experts set a “dangerous precedent.”
The United Nations stated Thursday that the US decision to impose sanctions on UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Francesca Albanese, establishes a “dangerous precedent.” UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric voiced this concern at a news conference.
Dujarric clarified that Albanese, like all special rapporteurs, is “an independent human rights expert appointed by the UN Human Rights Council and reporting to the UN Human Rights Council.” He underscored their independence, stating, “Special Rapporteurs do not report to the Secretary-General (Antonio Guterres). He (Guterres) has no authority over them or their work.”
While acknowledging that member states are “perfectly entitled to their views and to disagree with reports by Special Rapporteurs,” Dujarric urged them to “engage with the UN’s human rights architecture.” He firmly asserted, “The use of unilateral sanctions against Special Rapporteurs or any other UN expert or official is unacceptable.”
Asked about UN chief Antonio Guterres’s personal support for Albanese, Dujarric affirmed that Guterres “respects the work of all UN Human Rights reporters,” highlighting their “extremely important” role in the Human Rights architecture.
Dujarric also stressed that it is “really unacceptable for member states to have an ala carte approach” to the UN Charter, urging signatories to “engage with it.” He announced that the UN is responding to a letter from US Charge d’Affaires ad interim Dorothy Shea.
The US sanctions followed a report by Albanese last week that identified corporations allegedly facilitating Israeli occupation on Palestinian lands. These included major tech and defense firms such as Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and Palantir, accused of providing military hardware, surveillance technology, and infrastructure supporting the occupation.
The US has faced criticism for its support of Israel’s ongoing occupation and the current genocide of Palestinians, which since October 2023 has led to the deaths of over 57,000 people, most of them women and children.
Albanese’s Report on Corporate Complicity
In a recent article, Ramzy Baroud wrote that Francesca Albanese’s latest report, “From Economy of Occupation to Economy of Genocide,” submitted to the UN Human Rights Council on July 3, marks a “seismic intervention.” He argued that the report fearlessly names and implicates companies enabling Israel’s war and genocide against Palestinians, offering practical pathways to corporate accountability that go beyond mere diplomatic rhetoric.
Baroud highlights that Albanese’s report is significant for two crucial contexts. Firstly, it builds upon the UN Human Rights Council’s February 2020 database, which listed 112 companies involved in illegal Israeli settlements, including major entities like Airbnb, Booking.com, Motorola Solutions, and Expedia. This database was a vital step for civil societies to mobilize and pressure corporations and governments, a strategy whose effectiveness was evident in the strong reactions from the US and Israel.
Secondly, Baroud emphasizes that the Israeli genocide in Gaza since October 7, 2023, starkly revealed the failure of existing UN mechanisms to even provide basic aid. Albanese’s new report goes further, appealing to humanity to take a moral stance against those who made the genocide possible. It declares, “Commercial endeavors enabling and profiting from the obliteration of innocent people’s lives must cease,” demanding that “corporate entities must refuse to be complicit in human rights violations and international crimes or be held to account.”
According to Baroud, the report categorizes complicity across various sectors, including arms manufacturers, tech firms, construction companies, and financial institutions. These include Lockheed Martin, Microsoft, Amazon, Palantir, IBM, and even Maersk, among nearly 1,000 other firms. Baroud concludes that Albanese’s report aims to provide civil society with a comprehensive framework to make responsible decisions, apply pressure, and hold these corporate giants accountable for their alleged roles in the ongoing conflict and human rights violations.
Albanese’s Bombshell: The Corporate Giants Fueling Israel’s War Machine in Palestine
(AA, PC, UN News)
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