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Women Journalists Without Chains (WJWC) strongly condemns the sanctions recently imposed by the United States government on Ms.
Francesca Albanese, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories. The organization regards the move as a flagrant and unjustified assault on the principles of international justice and the independence of United Nations mechanisms.
The sanctions followed the release of Ms. Albanese’s official report, in which she documented serious violations committed by Israeli forces against Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. The report named more than sixty companies—including several based in the United States—for their involvement in supporting settlement expansion and military operations, raising international legal concerns.
WJWC warned that these punitive measures appear intended to intimidate UN mandate holders and silence those who expose grave human rights violations. “Targeting an independent UN expert for fulfilling her mandate is a deeply troubling precedent,” the organization stated. “This action severely undermines the credibility of the international system and sends a dangerous message to those working to uphold human rights and accountability.”
Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and WJWC founder, Tawakkol Karman, expressed strong support for Ms. Albanese, praising her integrity, professionalism, and courage in confronting one of the most entrenched human rights crises of our time. “Her work reflects the very essence of the UN’s mission: to protect the vulnerable and uphold international law,” Karman said.
Karman further called on democratic states and the international community to take a principled stand in defense of the UN’s special procedures and to reject efforts to politicize human rights mechanisms. She emphasized that the U.S. sanctions reflect a broader pattern of pressure aimed at shielding Israel from accountability, warning that such actions weaken the global human rights framework.
Women Journalists Without Chains reiterates that the United States, by enacting these measures, has forfeited its claim to any moral authority on issues of justice and humanitarian law. The organization urges the international community to apply diplomatic pressure to ensure the immediate reversal of the sanctions and to safeguard the independence of UN experts in carrying out their mandates without interference or retaliation.
