US sanctions on UN human rights expert unacceptable: UN spokesman

United Nations, July 11 (IANS) US sanctions against a UN human rights expert are unacceptable, said a UN spokesman.

The imposition of sanctions on UN human rights special rapporteurs is a dangerous precedent, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, in response to US sanctions on Francesca Albanese, UN special rapporteur on the human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territory.

Member states are perfectly entitled to their views and to disagree with the reports by the special rapporteurs, said the spokesman, "but we encourage them to engage with the UN human rights architecture. The use of unilateral sanctions against special rapporteurs, or any other UN expert or official, is unacceptable."

He also noted that Albanese, like all other UN human rights special rapporteurs, is an independent human rights expert appointed by the UN Human Rights Council and reporting to the Geneva-based council, Xinhua news agency reported.

Special rapporteurs do not report to the UN secretary-general, who has no authority over them or their work, added Dujarric.

Washington on Wednesday announced sanctions against Albanese over her role in investigating alleged Israeli human rights violations against Palestinians. The move marks Washington's latest efforts to deter international investigations into alleged war crimes committed by Israel amid its ongoing military operations in Gaza.

The sanctions follow an executive order signed by US President Donald Trump in February, which authorised punitive measures against the International Criminal Court for what the administration described as "illegitimate and baseless actions" targeting the United States and Israel.

--IANS

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