Francesca Albaniza: The Conscience of Justice in the Face of the 'Netanyahu-Trump' Genocide

Author: جمال زقوت

Francesca Albaniza is considered the first woman to be appointed, on May 1, 2020, as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, holding this position for three years. The Human Rights Council extended her mandate for a second term on April 4, 2025, for an additional three years, extending her term until the end of 2028.

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Since taking on this role, Albaniza has devoted her professional life to justice for Palestine, revealing the severity of violations faced by the Palestinian people from the Zionist occupation government. These violations have focused on seizing the basic means of human life for our Palestinian people, not only their land, resources, and freedom, stemming from the insistence of successive Zionist governments to confiscate the Palestinians' right to return, self-determination, and national independence in their own state, in accordance with international law and relevant UN resolutions.

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As soon as Israel declared its aggressive war on the Gaza Strip, Albaniza sought to declare an immediate cessation of military operations, warning from the outset of a slide into ethnic cleansing, which has been and continues to be the most prominent label for the genocide crimes committed by the Tel Aviv government and its army. She presented a report to the Human Rights Council in March 2024, concluding that what is happening in Gaza may amount to genocide. She also published a report in June 2025 linking major companies to their support of the occupation, listing 48 companies and accusing them of contributing to the “Economy of Genocide.”

In this sense, Francesca challenged what can be considered the “hornet’s nest” to elevate the values of justice and the voice of the victims of the aggression of the Zionist-American alliance, which has continued for more than seventy-five years of pain and injustice. Her stances revealed the reality of the living nerve of this suffering, which has been crowned with ongoing genocide crimes against our Palestinian people since October 7 until today.

Gaza: Human Ashes

In her famous report “Anatomy of a Genocide,” presented in March 2024 before the UN Human Rights Council, Albaniza confirmed that there are “reasonable grounds to believe” that Israel has committed at least three legally defined acts of genocide in Gaza: first, the killing of members of a Palestinian group; second, inflicting serious physical or psychological harm upon them; and finally, creating living conditions intended to bring about the partial or total destruction of the Palestinian group. She pointed to the comprehensive destruction of the structures of human life, asserting that “the destruction of everything necessary for life in Gaza,” including schools, hospitals, housing, and infrastructure, is evidence of the intention “to destroy the social, cultural, and economic system of the Palestinians.” She also noted the rise of “incitement rhetoric” by Israeli officials as deadly evidence of genocidal intent. In later statements, she described what is happening in the sector as “not a war but genocide.” In October 2024, she literally stated: “Don’t call it a war. It is a genocide… the intent is clear and conclusive.” She also mentioned that Gaza has turned into “human ashes,” and that what is happening there is the largest “case of genocide in modern history,” thanks to technology and modern weapons. She called for imposing sanctions on Israel and banning military exports to it, as she believes that the continued supply of arms is considered “assistance” to commit genocide. In May 2025, she condemned the policy of the “humanitarian mask” used to deliver aid under Israeli military dominance, and issued a loud call to “stop the madness” and prevent aid from being used as cover for genocidal crimes, emphasizing that cutting off electricity and water from Gaza constitutes “a warning of genocide” due to the prevention of basic life opportunities.

US Sanctions: An Attempt to Silence the Voice of the Victims

Albaniza's stances raised the importance of exerting pressure on the international community to act legally and provide support to the International Criminal Court, considering it a top priority to hold Israeli officials accountable. Her latest report in July 2025, titled “From the Economy of Occupation to the Economy of Genocide,” claimed that specific companies benefit from what she calls the “Economy of Genocide,” leading to a political backlash, including US sanctions against her. The US State Department issued a decision to impose sanctions on Francesca Albaniza on July 9, 2025, including freezing her assets in the United States and banning her entry into its territory, as part of the implementation of Executive Order No. 14203, which targets ICC aides and individuals linked to investigations against Israeli or US citizens.

Since Trump entered the White House, he announced his war on international law and humanitarian law. Despite his insistence on reaching a ceasefire agreement before the inauguration of his second term, he quickly sided with the genocide war by supporting Israel's violation of the agreement that he and his team oversaw, providing cover from March until today for the continuation of Israeli crimes against innocents in the sector, remaining silent about the daily crimes committed by the occupation army and terrorist settlers, which do not exclude paving the way for genocide and ethnic cleansing, in the context of the Tel Aviv government's pursuit of what it considers the “decisive plan.” At the same time, Trump continues to give the green light to continue genocide and ethnic cleansing, this time through the false pretext of wanting to stop the war, which does not extend beyond Israeli goals and timing.

Francesca has earned the title of “Bearer of the Banner of Justice” in the face of genocide criminals and those behind them, especially Trump and his administration, and the European hypocrisy that has not taken any practical steps to stop the genocide and disrupt its political goals, contenting itself with verbal condemnations that are not sufficient. Yes, it is a struggle between the values of justice and truth, of which Palestine has become the most prominent symbol, and between persecution, injustice, and the disregard for human dignity and basic rights. Perhaps Francesca has become in this struggle a symbol for millions of people across the globe, along with thousands of human rights organizations all over the world, including Washington, as well as in Tel Aviv.

What is surprising, however, is that the leadership dominating power and governance has reached a level where it has refrained even until now from declaring any position condemning the US sanctions on Albaniza; not only to support her free voice, which extends to millions of voices shouting for Palestine and its freedom and justice for its people, but also to highlight the voices of the victims, including children, women, and others, who Albaniza considered the essence of the cause, and not what was imposed on her by sanctions that target only to silence her, along with silencing and sidelining justice in Palestine, to proceed with the liquidation of the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people.