CounterPunch Exclusives

CounterPunch Exclusives

Witches Unite: How Israel and the US Empire Tried (and Failed) to Crush Francesca Albanese

Photograph Source: Matteo Nardone

The United States government, under first Biden and now Trump, has launched a full-scale assault on one of the most courageous and honest voices at the United Nations: Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories. In July 2025, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced sanctions against her — freezing assets, banning travel to the United States, and attempting to financially strangle her and her family — all for the crime of doing her job with integrity: rigorously documenting Israel’s genocide in Gaza and demanding accountability under international law.

In an unprecedented move, this appears to be the first time any country has ever sanctioned a sitting UN Special Rapporteur. The Trump administration’s attack has been particularly vicious. Israeli officials, led by UN envoy Danny Danon, had already resorted to medieval slander, publicly calling Albanese a “witch” with a “spell book” for daring to produce factual reports on Israeli crimes. The sanctions were designed to turn her into a global financial outcast: she has been blocked from accessing bank accounts, using credit cards, or managing any financial resources in both the US and Europe. Even banks in Italy and across the EU refused to open or allow access to her........

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