United Nations Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in the Palestinian Territories Francesca Albanese was returned to the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) specially designated nationals sanctions list on Wednesday, after she had been temporarily removed last week following an appeal of her status.
OFAC announced that the Tunis resident had been returned to the SDN list for International Criminal Court-related sanctions. Albanese had been removed from the SDN list on May 20, Reuters reported.
A United States District Court issued a preliminary injunction against sanctioning the Italian citizen on May 13, in response to a February lawsuit filed by Albanese’s family against the US government. The plaintiffs had argued they were unjustly impacted by the decision and that Albanese’s free speech rights were violated.
Last Thursday, the District of Columbia US Court of Appeals issued a stay for the injunction, finding the reasoning behind the injunction flawed because it was issued on the belief that foreign citizens possessed US constitutional rights. It was also noted that Albanese was not a party to the suit, and proper remediation would have sought their exemption from sanctions.
US Court ruling temporarily blocked sanctions
Secretary of State Marco Rubio had announced the sanctions against Albanese in July, following US President Donald Trump’s February executive order imposing sanctions on the ICC.
Albanese had aided the ICC in efforts to investigate, arrest, or prosecute US and Israeli citizens without their government’s consent, said Rubio, issuing reports and threatening missives against US companies. In June, Albanese issued a report, “From Economy of Occupation to Economy of Genocide,” detailing a list of “enablers” of alleged Israeli crimes.
“The United States has repeatedly condemned and objected to the biased and malicious activities of Albanese that have long made her unfit for service as a Special Rapporteur. Albanese has spewed unabashed antisemitism, expressed support for terrorism, and open contempt for the United States, Israel, and the West,” Rubio had said in July. “We will not tolerate these campaigns of political and economic warfare, which threaten our national interests and sovereignty.”
Trump had issued his executive order in response to preliminary investigations of US personnel and allies, including Israel, making special note of arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Former Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant. The order argued that the ICC lacked jurisdiction over the US and threatened to violate American sovereignty.
