The U.S. Treasury has re-listed Francesca Albanese, the U.N. expert on the Palestinian territories, as a sanctioned individual following a Treasury notice on May 27. Albanese was first sanctioned in July 2025 for urging the ICC to act against U.S. and Israeli officials and was briefly removed after a federal judge granted an injunction citing likely free-speech violations. A three-judge D.C. Circuit panel issued an administrative stay of that injunction, allowing the sanctions to be reimposed while the appeal continues.
U.S. Restores Sanctions on U.N. Palestinian Expert Francesca Albanese After Appeals Court Issues Administrative Stay
FILE PHOTO: Francesca Albanese, UN special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, attends a news conference during the Human Rights Council at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, March 24, 2026. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo
May 27 (Reuters) - The United States has reinstated sanctions against Francesca Albanese, the U.N. expert on the Palestinian territories, adding her again to the list of designated individuals, a notice posted Wednesday on the U.S. Treasury Department website said.
The original designation, imposed in July 2025, accused Albanese of pressing the International Criminal Court (ICC) to pursue actions against U.S. and Israeli officials, companies and executives. Sanctions of this type generally allow U.S. authorities to block assets and prohibit most transactions by U.S. persons with designated individuals.
Albanese had briefly been removed from the sanctions list earlier in May after a federal injunction sought by her husband and daughter. U.S. District Judge Richard Leon in Washington concluded the administration likely violated her free-speech rights when it imposed the measures following her public criticism of Israel's campaign in Gaza.
On Friday, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued an administrative stay of Judge Leon's injunction, permitting the government to enforce Albanese's designation while the appeal proceeds. The appeals court emphasized the stay is procedural and "should not be construed in any way as a ruling on the merits" of the underlying legal challenge.
As a result of the stay and the Treasury notice, Albanese's sanctions are again in effect pending the outcome of the appeals process. The legal dispute over free-speech protections and the scope of sanctions remains active and may change depending on the appeals court's eventual decision.
(Reporting by Ryan Patrick Jones and Ismail Shakil; Editing by Stephen Coates)
Help us improve.
