Israel’s Interior and Foreign Ministries announce that they will no longer allow Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Palestinian Territories, to enter the country.
They claim that Ms. Albanese has expressed “anti-Semitic” views justifying Hamas’s massacre of Israelis on October 7, and therefore demand that the UN dismiss her.
Albanese has been denied an entry visa by the Israeli Interior Ministry for several months – but she is also officially banned from entering the country, a ban that has no time limit.
The background includes a post on X (formerly Twitter) in which she argues that Hamas’s bloody attacks on October 7 were a “response to Israel’s oppression” – a view that has not gone down well with Israeli leaders.
“The ‘greatest anti-Semitic massacre of our century’? No, Mr. Emmanuel Macron. The victims of 7/10 were not killed because of their Judaism, but in response to Israeli oppression. France and the international community did nothing to stop it. My respect to the victims” she wrote in response to an article about the French president’s attention to the victims.
Le 'plus grand massacre antisémite de notre siècle'? Non, M. @EmmanuelMacron. Les victimes du 7/10 n'ont pas été tuées à cause de leur judaïsme, mais en réaction de l'oppression d'Israël. La France & la communauté int'le n'ont rien fait pour l'empêcher. Mes respects aux victimes. https://t.co/uiXOkD7HV4
— Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) February 10, 2024
Israel demands disassociation
Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz and Interior Minister Moshe Arbel said in a joint statement that “the era of Jews being silent is over” and demanded that the UN disassociate itself from the remarks and fire Albanese.
“If the UN wants to return to being a relevant body, its leaders must publicly disavow the anti-Semitic words of the ‘Special Envoy’ – and fire her permanently. Preventing her from entering Israel might remind her of the real reason why Hamas slaughtered babies, women and adults”, it added.
