U.S. Imposes Sanctions on U.N. Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday that the United States would impose sanctions on Francesca Albanese, a United Nations expert on the occupied Palestinian territories, for “efforts to prompt” the International Criminal Court to investigate U.S. companies and Israeli officials.

The decision to impose sanctions on a U.N.-affiliated lawyer was highly unusual. An Italian legal scholar and outspoken critic of Israel, Ms. Albanese serves as the United Nations’ special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories. She is not a U.N. official, but was appointed as an unpaid independent expert to monitor human rights issues.

Mr. Rubio linked the sanctions decision to a broader American effort to retaliate against the International Criminal Court, which issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister and Yoav Gallant, the former defense minister, last year, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip.

At the same time, the court issued a warrant for the arrest of Hamas’s military chief, Muhammad Deif, accusing him of crimes against humanity, including murder, hostage taking and sexual violence. Israel says it killed him in an airstrike, and Hamas has confirmed his death.

Ms. Albanese does not work for the International Criminal Court, but she has encouraged it to prosecute Israeli leaders and international companies over the war against Hamas in Gaza. Her often fiery posts on social media have drawn criticism from Israel and its allies, who have accused her of antisemitism.

“We will not tolerate these campaigns of political and economic warfare, which threaten our national interests and sovereignty,” Mr. Rubio said.