Israeli clearance of Gaza rubble could destroy 'evidence,' says UN's Francesca Albanese

Israeli clearance of rubble in Gaza could destroy valuable evidence of "atrocity crimes" and prevent the recovery of human remains, United Nations Special Rapporteur to the Palestinian Territories Francesca Albanese said on Monday. The war in Gaza has generated around 61 million tons of wreckage and debris that could take seven years to clear, according to the UN.Albanese said evidence should be gathered and human remains identified before full clearance started.She issued a statement headlined: "UN expert warns Israeli rubble-clearing could erase traces of atrocity crimes" and said Palestinians should be behind any plans to remove waste."In devastated Gaza, rubble is not just construction waste," she said. "It is part of a crime scene, a graveyard, and the material record of what happened during a brutal and senseless bombing campaign that lasted two years.” She said multiple sources had confirmed Israeli companies were involved in the clearance, without naming them. Her office did not immediately respond to questions about where that information came from.The Foreign Ministry, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) and the IDF did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In the past, all have fiercely disagreed with Albanese, who has emerged as one of the most vocal critics of Israel's military actions in Gaza.Several countries condemn Albanese for commentsIn February, Germany, France and Italy all condemned what they said were her overly negative statements about Israel, though she denied making the remarks they cited.In July 2025, the US imposed sanctions on Albanese over what it said were her efforts to prompt the International Criminal Court (ICC) to take action against US and Israeli officials, companies, and executives.UN experts are commissioned by the Geneva-based Human Rights Council to monitor and document specific human rights crises but are independent of the organization itself.The October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks killed 1,200 people in Israel while another 251 were taken hostage.More than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military campaign, according to Hamas-run Gazan health authorities.Israel says it has gone to great lengths to avoid civilian casualties and that Hamas uses Gaza's civilians as human shields in densely populated areas.