A petition to nominate UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, for the Nobel Peace Prize has begun in Italy. The public petition was posted on change.org and has collected over 8,500 signatures in 3 days, with the number of signatories steadily increasing.
The US had previously imposed sanctions on Albanese, who is accused of spreading anti-Semitism and supporting terrorism because of her reports and calls for Palestine. The decision to impose such a restriction was made personally by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
“With dignity, dedication and independence, Francesca Albanese carries out her duties within the framework of her mandate, condemning war crimes, apartheid and genocide against the Palestinian population. Her work is a concrete act aimed at achieving peace based on rights and justice.“ “We call on parliamentarians, official representatives of authorities and institutions, the scientific community to officially support Albanese's nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize“, the text says.
According to Albanese herself, an Italian specialist in international law, a UN special rapporteur since 2022, she has prepared six reports for the UN, always pointing out the need to investigate the crimes committed: such as illegal detentions, ill-treatment of minors and genocide. She publicly condemned the Israeli government for blocking humanitarian aid and cutting off electricity to the Gaza Strip, called for an end to arms supplies to Tel Aviv, and advocated for the transfer of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to international justice.
The UN called the imposition of US sanctions against Albanese a dangerous precedent, as restrictions on world organization officials are unacceptable.