The UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied territories has warned that moves to recognise a Palestinian state should not distract member states from stopping mass death and starvation in Gaza.
This came in remarks to a news agency after several more countries responded to the mounting starvation in Gaza by announcing plans to recognize an independent Palestine.
Francesca Albanese asserted that it’s important to recognize the state of Palestine, adding, “It’s incoherent that they’ve not done it already.”
However, she argued that the prolonged debate around Palestinian statehood has so far yielded no political progress and instead, enabled the spread of illegal Israeli settlements in occupied territory which have all but precluded the possibility of a Palestinian state. “The territory has been literally eaten out by the advancement of the annexation and colonization,” she said.
This week, Australia joined the United Kingdom, Canada, France and other countries in pledging to recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations general assembly next month. The Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, described the two-state solution as “humanity’s best hope to break the cycle of violence in the Middle East.”
Nonetheless, the Special Rapporteur cautioned that the renewed push for Palestinian statehood should not “distract the attention from where it should be: the genocide.”
She called for an embargo on all arms sales to Israel and a cessation of trade agreements – as well as accountability for the war crimes and crimes against humanity with which the international criminal court has charged top Israeli officials.
She also called for a complete Israeli withdrawal from occupied territory by the 17 September deadline set by the UN General Assembly.
“Ending the question of Palestine in line with international law is possible and necessary: end the genocide today, end the permanent occupation this year, and end apartheid.
“This is what’s going to guarantee freedom and equal rights for everyone, regardless of the way they want to live – in two states or one state, they will have to decide.”
Francesca Albanese
In her three years as Rapporteur, but especially since the beginning of Israel’s war in Gaza following the 7 October 2023 Hamas attacks, Albanese has become one of the most outspoken and recognizable advocates for Palestinian rights.
Her technical reports accusing Israel of operating an “apartheid regime” and committing “acts of genocide” have often anticipated major international and Israeli rights groups reaching the same conclusions.
Shift In Global Views Of Israel’s War In Gaza
Moreover, Albanese noted that Israel’s 21-month war in Gaza had prompted a “profound shift” in global views of the conflict, as well as “brutal repression.”
Albanese described the growing global split over Israel’s actions in Gaza as “the ultimate struggle” and a matter of “light and darkness.”
“We see millions of people taking to the streets and asking for an end to the genocide, and they’re being beaten and arrested and held on counts of terrorism, while those who are wanted by the ICC for war crimes are being received and allowed to fly over European and western space. This is absurd. This is the end of the rule of law.”
Francesca Albanese
She added that international law “is not a prophecy” but rather a “tool that must be used in order to fix things.” “And in fact, when people use it in court, they generally win,” she asserted.
Additionally, she sounded a note of optimism about the shifting discourse around Israel’s actions.
“An entire new generation now speaks the language of human rights. For me, this is a success in and of itself.”
Francesca Albanese
The widening gap between those in power and millions of people that have taken to the streets worldwide in support of Palestinians is in part why Albanese’s most recent report focused not on Israeli actions but on the global corporations that she says are “profiting from genocide.”
READ ALSO: NPA Targets Illegal Fuel Operators with Threat of Immediate Shutdown
