Federal judge blocks US sanctions against UN's Francesca Albanese
A federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked US sanctions against Francesca Albanese, a United Nations expert on the Palestinian territories, claiming that the Trump administration likely violated her free-speech rights by imposing the measures. The sanctions barred her from entering the US and banking there. Albanese, an Italian lawyer who is the UN special rapporteur on the Palestinian territories, recommended the International Criminal Court (ICC) pursue war-crimes prosecutions against Israeli and American nationals. Albanese's husband and daughter, who is a US citizen, sued the Trump administration in February, alleging that the US sanctions are "effectively debanking her and making it nearly impossible to meet the needs of her daily life.” In a post on X/Twitter following the decision, Albanese thanked her family for “stepping up” in her defense. US District Judge Richard Leon in Washington found that Albanese’s residency outside the US does not undercut her protections under the First Amendment of the US Constitution and that the Trump administration sought to regulate her speech because of the "idea or message expressed.” Albanese has decried the sanctions as part of a broader US strategy to weaken international accountability mechanisms. Albanese accused of support for terrorism in US sanctions In July 2025, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the sanctions against Albanese. In a press release at the time, Rubio described Albanese’s engagement with the ICC as a “gross infringement on the sovereignty” of the US and Israel, given the fact that neither country is party to the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC. “Albanese has spewed unabashed antisemitism, expressed support for terrorism, and open contempt for the United States, Israel, and the West,” Rubio’s statement continued. Rubio accused Albanese of “making extreme and unfounded accusations,” asserting that the US will not tolerate such campaigns of political warfare that threaten the sovereignty of the US and its allies.