An independent expert appointed by the UN Human Rights
Council said on Thursday
that Israel’s decision to ban her from entering the country is
nothing new and must not distract from atrocities being committed
in Gaza.
As Special Rapporteur on the
situation of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian
Territories, Francesca Albanese has a mandate from the
Council which includes investigating violations, undertaking
regular visits or missions, and reporting on findings.
Israel’s Foreign Minister and Interior Minister announced this
week that she was prohibited from entering the country following
recent comments made online about the 7 October Hamas attacks
that sparked the current hostilities in Gaza.
‘Symbolic and misleading’
“Since Israel’s 2008 detention and deportation of then UN Special
Rapporteur Richard Falk, the State of Israel has prevented the
entry of all UN Special Rapporteurs on the situation of human
rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967.
Israel’s recent announcement to ‘officially ban’ my entry is
therefore symbolic and misleading,” Ms. Albanese said
in a
statement.
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“Israel’s announcement must not serve as a diversion from
the situation in Gaza,” she continued, before listing
some of the devastating toll of the current conflict, including
more than 28,500 Palestinians killed, mainly women and
children.
“Israel claims that the ban follows my comments concerning the
context in which Hamas’ attacks on 7 October took place. My
comments were prompted by the French President’s description of
the attacks as ‘the largest antisemitic massacre of our
century’”, she said.
‘Heinous attacks’ condemned
“I have strongly and consistently condemned these heinous
attacks as war crimes, which cannot be justified in any
way, and for the fear and distress they have spread among
Israelis.
“I continue to express my sorrow and solidarity with the victims,
including the hostages still held captive, and with Jewish
communities worldwide. I also call for accountability for these
crimes”.
Challenging ‘persistent misinterpretation’
While underlining her unequivocal condemnation of the attacks,
Ms. Albanese said that she “also felt compelled to challenge a
persistent misinterpretation of the root causes…particularly in
Western countries”, namely that they were primarily motivated by
antisemitism.
“As prominent Holocaust and antisemitism scholars
have warned,
this assumption is both false and dangerous as it
evades the critical underpinnings of the conflict and disavows
the role of Israel in fuelling it,” she said.
“These scholars have recently argued that ‘appealing to the
memory of the Holocaust obscures our understanding of the
antisemitism Jews face today, and dangerously misrepresents the
causes of violence in Israel-Palestine.’ So, while antisemitism
could have played a role in the attacks at an individual level
for some, their main determinants are to be found
elsewhere.”
Context matters
Ms. Albanese insisted that context does matter. She cited
UN Secretary-General António
Guterres who has stated that “It
is important to also recognise the attacks by Hamas did not
happen in a vacuum. The Palestinian people have been subjected to
56 years of suffocating occupation.”
The rights expert stressed that fundamentally, no crime ever
justifies another.
“There is no justification for the horrific attacks of 7 October.
However, the ‘56 years of suffocating occupation’ referred to by
the Secretary-General is the very context that fuels the hatred
and violence that endangers Israelis and Palestinians
alike. This context is obscured by the framing of 7
October as primarily driven by antisemitism,” she
said.
Ms. Albanese noted that she has sought to establish formal
relations with Israel since the early days of her mandate, adding
“unfortunately, Israel has responded with hostility and slander
that is often amplified by politically aligned organisations and
media.”
She recalled that as a UN Member State, Israel is obligated to
respect international law and uphold the values of
the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights and the UN
Charter.
“Although a long and challenging endeavour, respecting
international law and ending the system of apartheid that Israel
imposes on the Palestinians is the only way to achieve lasting
peace, human security and regional stability - for no one can be
safe until everyone is safe.”
About Special Rapporteurs
Special Rapporteurs like Ms. Albanese are part of what is known
as the Special Procedures of
the UN Human Rights Council, which is the largest body of
independent experts in the UN human rights system.
They are appointed by the Council to monitor and report on either
specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of
the world.
Experts work on a voluntary basis and are independent of any
government or organization. They serve in their individual
capacity and are neither UN staff nor are they paid for their
work.
