WASHINGTON D.C, July 9, 2025 – The United States escalated its diplomatic standoff with the United Nations on Wednesday, imposing sanctions on Francesca Albanese, the UN Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories. The move, announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio on July 9, 2025, follows Albanese’s recent call for the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate alleged war crimes by Israeli officials and corporate entities amid the ongoing conflict with Hamas.
Rubio condemned Albanese’s efforts as “illegitimate and shameful,” accusing her of waging “political and economic warfare” against the U.S. and its ally, Israel. The sanctions mark a significant escalation in the U.S. response to what it describes as lawfare targeting its sovereignty and that of its partners. “We will always stand by our partners in their right to self-defense,” Rubio stated in a post on X.
The decision has sparked immediate backlash. On Wednesday evening, the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to housing, who goes by the handle @adequatehousing on X, denounced the sanctions as an “outrageous attack” on Albanese, calling it a “criminal act of desperation” that “will not stand the test of time.” The post, quoting Rubio’s announcement, has ignited a firestorm of reactions online, with supporters and critics clashing over Albanese’s mandate and credibility.
Albanese, an Italian legal scholar appointed to her role in 2022 and reappointed for a second three-year term, has long been a polarizing figure. Her troubles with Israel deepened in February 2024 when the Israeli government banned her from entering the country. This followed her controversial statement that the victims of the October 7, 2024, massacre—where Hamas killed over 1,200 people—were targeted “in response to Israeli oppression,” rather than due to their Jewish identity. The remark drew widespread condemnation and fueled accusations of antisemitism.
The Trump administration intensified pressure on Albanese earlier this year. On June 20, 2025, it sent a letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres, demanding her removal from her post, citing alleged support for terrorism and antisemitic bias. The U.S. Department of Justice’s Task Force to Combat Antisemitism had previously criticized the UN for what it called Albanese’s “silence and selective outrage” on human rights issues, a charge echoed by some X users who labeled her a “liar” and “terrorist simp.”
The controversy took a darker turn in February 2025 when Betar, a Jewish far-right group with ties to Israel’s Likud party, threatened Albanese with a pager attack during her visit to London. The group’s “Pager Campaign,” inspired by Israel’s 2024 Lebanon electronic device attacks, has targeted perceived anti-Israel figures, and its threat against Albanese—marked by a social media post with a pager emoji—has raised security concerns.
Albanese’s supporters, including human rights organizations and scholars, argue that the accusations against her are baseless attempts to discredit her work. They praise her for raising awareness of alleged Palestinian rights violations, a stance reflected in the @adequatehousing post that has garnered significant attention. Meanwhile, critics on X have called for her prosecution, questioning her legal credentials and accusing her of hating Jewish people.
As the international community watches closely, the sanctions and ensuing debate highlight deepening divisions over the Israel-Palestine conflict. The UN Human Rights Council has yet to respond officially, but the situation promises to remain a flashpoint in global diplomacy.