A UN expert who concluded Israel was committing genocide in Gaza on Wednesday faced threats to his work, but insisted they only made him more determined to press on.
Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on the human rights situation in the Palestinian territories, said this week there were reasonable grounds to believe Israel was committing genocide once morest Palestinians in Gaza.
Israel, which has long been highly critical of Albanese and his mandate, condemned his report as an “obscene departure from reality”, while pro-Israel groups called for him to step down.
When asked regarding the fallout at a press conference in Geneva, Albanese admitted “it has been a difficult time”.
The independent expert, appointed by the UN Human Rights Council in 2022 but who does not speak on behalf of the UN, said he had been under attack since the start of his mandate.
“I did receive threats,” he admitted, but said he had received nothing so far that would be deemed to warrant extra precautions.
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And the pressure only encouraged him “not to back down,” Albanese said.
Israel visa ban
Israel last month announced a visa ban on Albanian citizens over comments denying the Hamas attack on October 7 was an “anti-Semitic” act.
In his report it is only an extension of a campaign that seeks to undermine the establishment of the Jewish State.
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The US State Department on Wednesday highlighted its opposition to Albanese’s mandate, “which we believe is unproductive”.
Spokesman Matthew Miller accused the expert of having a “history of anti-Semitic comments,” including some “that appeared to justify the October 7 attacks.”
Regarding his report, he reiterated Washington’s belief that “allegations of genocide are baseless.”
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Albanese insisted Wednesday he was not “questioning the existence of the State of Israel”, but wanted Israel to behave “in accordance with international law”.
He also reiterated he had found no evidence that the Oct. 7 attack was “driven by anti-Semitism.”
The expert, who argued the attack was motivated by “Israeli oppression”, admitted his comments were not “strategic”, but said he stood by his report.
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Albanese, who has received support from Arab and Muslim countries since releasing his report, said that when he finally left office, it would not be because of his critics.
“It’s not because they slandered or persecuted me in public discourse.”
Involved?
Albanese said he “of course” condemned Hamas and its brutal attacks on Israel, but added: “nothing can justify what Israel is doing”.
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The Oct. 7 attack resulted in regarding 1,160 deaths in Israel, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed at least 32,400 people in Gaza, the vast majority of them women and children, according to the Hamas Health Ministry, and has sparked a humanitarian disaster and UN warnings of the threat of famine.
Albanese called for an “international protective presence” in Gaza, and also demanded that other countries impose sanctions and arms embargoes to stem the violence.
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States, he stressed, have an obligation under the UN Genocide Convention to act “promptly” when a risk of genocide is detected.
Albanese said he next intended to investigate the possible “involvement” of the United States, Israel’s main backer, as well as other countries.
“Genocide has occurred,” he said, but added that “we can still save lives and we can still stop the descent into the abyss.” (AFP/Z-3)
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