Washington, May 21 (SANA) The United States has removed Francesca Albanese, UN special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories, from its sanctions list, according to the US Treasury Department website.
The move follows a federal judge’s temporary injunction blocking the sanctions, ruling they likely violated her freedom of speech. US District Judge Richard Leon said the measures appeared to target Albanese’s views, including her recommendations that the International Criminal Court issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant.
The sanctions, imposed in July, followed US accusations of “biased and malicious activities” and “lawfare” linked to her criticism of Israel’s war in Gaza and a report alleging 48 companies, including Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon, were complicit in the conflict.
Albanese, appointed in May 2022 by the UN Human Rights Council, did not immediately comment on the decision.
M.F / ABD
