The Trump administration announced Wednesday it will impose sanctions on Francesca Albanese, the United Nations special rapporteur for the West Bank and Gaza, escalating its campaign to defend Israel against what U.S. officials describe as a dangerous and deeply biased assault on its legitimacy.

The move follows longtime criticism over Albanese’s controversial public statements and her recent campaign of letters warning that institutions supporting Israel could face criminal liability for “aiding and abetting genocide.” The U.S. government has firmly rejected those accusations as baseless and defamatory.

“This is a campaign of political and economic warfare against our closest ally,” said Secretary of State Marco Rubio. “We will always stand by Israel in its right to self-defense. Ms. Albanese’s rhetoric and actions go beyond the mandate of her office and veer into dangerous incitement.”

A May 19 letter sent to Albanese by top U.S. officials, including DOJ Antisemitism Task Force head Led Terrell and Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun, accused her of waging a “defamatory, dangerous, and flagrant abuse of office.” The letter denounced her efforts to criminalize support for Israel, describing her actions as legally groundless and morally repugnant.

The letter, which has since been shared with senior international officials including U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres, lays out graphic evidence of Hamas atrocities on October 7, 2023 — including the murder of infants, the execution of pregnant women, and the kidnapping and torture of civilians — and criticizes Albanese for failing to issue clear and unequivocal condemnations of those crimes.

“Your persistent evasiveness and rationalization of terrorism do not reflect neutrality. They reflect complicity,” the letter states. It further accuses Albanese of amplifying propaganda and engaging in antisemitic double standards, warning that her silence on violence against Jews “sends a chilling message that Jewish lives are worth less.”

Albanese, a human rights lawyer, has accused Israel of genocide in its war against Hamas, aligning herself with calls for International Criminal Court investigations into Israeli officials. She has also been criticized for attending overseas events funded by groups linked to Hamas, with the letter citing reports she received $20,000 from such groups shortly after the October 7 attacks.

Her campaign has drawn widespread condemnation from pro-Israel groups and bipartisan lawmakers. Efforts to remove her from her U.N. post have so far been unsuccessful, but the administration’s sanctions represent a significant step in holding her accountable.

U.S. and Israeli officials say Albanese’s actions undermine not just Israel’s right to defend itself, but also the credibility of international human rights mechanisms. They contrast her approach with Israel’s adherence to the laws of armed conflict, including taking extraordinary steps to minimize civilian casualties in Gaza — despite Hamas embedding itself within civilian infrastructure.

“This is not principled human rights work — it is antisemitism cloaked in the language of international law,” said one senior administration official. “We are drawing a red line.”

Supporters of the sanctions praised the administration for standing up to what they see as an institutional bias within the United Nations. “When a U.N. official can distort the truth, excuse terrorism, and still claim the mantle of human rights, the system is broken,” said Rabbi Kaploun, one of the letter’s co-signers. “This is a long-overdue reckoning.”

The sanctions are expected to restrict Albanese’s financial access to U.S. institutions and block any U.S.-based travel or engagements in an official capacity. Further steps, including formal efforts to remove her from the U.N. Human Rights Council system, are reportedly under discussion.

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