A growing number of European governments are calling on the United Nations to remove Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on the Palestinian territories, citing what they describe as extreme and inflammatory statements, some of which critics say raise concerns of antisemitism beyond opposition to Israel.
After France and Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic joined the calls in recent days to dismiss the Italian human rights expert from her post. Dozens of British lawmakers have urged the Foreign Office to seek her removal. Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said this week that Albanese’s statements and conduct make calls for her resignation “inevitable.”
Italy’s ruling Brothers of Italy party has also begun collecting signatures demanding her dismissal.
The latest controversy erupted after Albanese participated by video in a conference organized by Al Jazeera in Doha, where speakers included Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and senior Hamas official Khaled Mashaal. France was the first to protest after Albanese was quoted as saying that Israel is the “common enemy of humanity.”
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot denounced her remarks as “antisemitic.” In her speech, Albanese referred to Israel as a “common enemy” that had, in her words, enabled what she called a “genocide” in Gaza.
She accused much of the international community of arming Israel and providing it with political cover and financial support instead of stopping it. “It’s also true that never before has the global community seen the challenges that we all face,” she said. “We who do not control large amounts of financial capitals, algorithms and weapons.”
Barrot said Albanese “presents herself as an independent UN expert, but she is neither an expert nor independent — she is a political activist who fuels hatred.” He added that her conduct harms both the Palestinian cause she claims to defend and the credibility of UN institutions.
As criticism mounted, Albanese said her comments had been taken out of context and manipulated. In an interview with France 24, she denied ever saying that Israel is the “common enemy of humanity.” She said she had been referring to “war crimes, crimes against humanity and acts that constitute genocide,” and that the “common enemy” she condemned was a system that, in her view, prevents accountability or an end to Israeli actions.
Left-wing parties in Europe have rallied to her defense, along with dozens of artists known for anti-Israel activism, including actors Javier Bardem and Mark Ruffalo and singer Annie Lennox, who signed a letter to the United Nations supporting her.
Over the past two years, Albanese has made a series of sharply critical statements about Israel that have made her a prominent figure among segments of Europe’s anti-Israel left. Days after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, she publicly cast doubt on allegations of sexual violence and rape by Hamas terrorists and accused Israel and the United States of spreading falsehoods to justify escalating the war.
She has argued that Israel has no right to self-defense after the Hamas incursion and said that, in her view, Israelis should be “considered suspect” and investigated when they are abroad. She has called for a pharmaceutical boycott of Israel, described it as a “genocide-supporting society” and accused it of standing against global justice.
Albanese has also said that when senior Hamas officials declare they want to “kill Jews,” they “do not really mean Jews.” She denied involvement by staff of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees in crimes attributed to Hamas and promoted claims of global Israeli and Jewish control over the arms trade.
At an award ceremony in Italy, she publicly rebuked a mayor who presented her with a prize after he called on Hamas to release hostages. To applause from the audience, she warned him not to repeat such a demand, saying it was not a legitimate request.