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First Post
18-07-2025
- Politics
- First Post
West Asia News Live: Syria captures headlines as regional shifts come open after Israel airstrikes
July 18, 2025, 07:15:08 (IST) Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Israel demands UN scrap investigation body for Palestinian territories Israel has officially demanded the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) abolish its commission of inquiry into rights violations in the Palestinian territories and Israel, according to a report in Reuters. In a letter, Israel's ambassador to the UN, Daniel Meron, accused the body of inherent discrimination. This diplomatic manoeuvre heightens geopolitical tensions in West Asia and carries significant implications for international legal frameworks. The move is viewed as part of a broader strategy by Israel to counter mounting international legal pressure, which includes an ongoing genocide case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and intense scrutiny over its military operations in Gaza. A successful bid to scrap the commission could ease this pressure, but failure risks deepening Israel's diplomatic isolation. For the Palestinians, the commission's dissolution would remove a key mechanism for pursuing international accountability. The challenge to the UNHRC's authority could also establish a precedent, potentially weakening global human rights oversight and creating uncertainty for investors who weigh geopolitical risk and the stability of international law.
Hans India
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
ASBM holds meet on youth leadership
Bhubaneswar: ASBM University organised Kalinga International Model United Nations (KIMUN) on July 5 and 6 serving as the official venue partner for this event. The two-day conference was attended by delegates across the country who demonstrated diplomacy, public speaking and critical thinking skills. In his inaugural address, Biswajeet Pattanayak, President and Founder of ASBM University, highlighted the importance of youth engagement in global policy-making and leadership. He encouraged delegates to embody the spirit of cooperation, dialogue and critical inquiry that the United Nations represents. Each of the four dynamic committees, UNHRC, DISEC, IP and All India Political Parties Meet (AIPPM), simulated real-world international and national diplomatic scenarios, providing a platform for delegates to negotiate, draft resolutions and represent their assigned nations or portfolios with integrity and intellect. Pattanayak visited each committee, interacted with young diplomats, encouraged them and appreciated their active participation. The Felicitation Ceremony was graced by ASBM University Vice Chancellor Ranjan Kumar Bal and other dignitaries. Delegates were recognised for their outstanding performances and awards distributed in various categories, celebrating the leadership and diplomacy showcased throughout the sessions.
Indian Express
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Who is Francesca Albanese, the UN expert sanctioned by the US?
The United States has imposed sanctions on an independent expert who has been tasked by the United Nations to investigate human rights abuses in the Palestinian territories. UN special rapporteur Francesca Albanese has been an outspoken critic of what she describes as the Israeli 'genocide' against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. She has also strongly supported the arrest warrants issued against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by the International Criminal Court (ICC). US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the sanctions for what he said were 'illegitimate and shameful efforts' by the special rapporteur to engage with the ICC to 'prompt action' against America and Israel. 'Albanese's campaign of political and economic warfare against the United States and Israel will no longer be tolerated,' Rubio posted on X on Wednesday (July 9). Albanese is an international lawyer who has been a UN special rapporteur on human rights in occupied Palestinian territories since May 2022. She is an affiliate scholar at the Institute for the Study of International Migration at Georgetown University, and a specialist in human rights and the Middle East. Albanese is co-author of Palestinian Refugees in International Law (2020), and has written extensively on Palestine and the mandate and work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). Albanese has strongly condemned Israel's actions in Gaza since the beginning of its campaign against Hamas in October 2023, and of the Trump administration's repeated attempts to silence voices that are critical of Israel. On July 3, while addressing the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), she accused Israel of 'one of the cruellest genocides in modern history', and described the situation in Gaza as 'apocalyptic'. Israel's actions were part of a decades-long 'settler colonial project of erasure' that had been escalated in recent months through the use of military force, starvation, and mass displacement, Albanese said. The special rapporteur is an independent expert appointed by the UNHRC to report on situations of human rights violations in occupied Palestinian territories. The mandate of the special rapporteur derives from the 1993 resolution of the Committee on Human Rights. The rapporteur works with governments and civil society, and reports her assessment of the human rights situation publicly. She makes regular site visits and reports annually to the UNHRC, which provides her with logistical assistance. The ICC is an international tribunal headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands. The ICC was established by the Rome Statute, an international treaty that was adopted on July 17, 1998, and entered into force on July 1, 2002. The ICC aims to 'end impunity for the perpetrators of the most serious crimes of concern to the international community' — genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression. The ICC, which has a cooperative and complementary relationship with the UN, is the only international court with the jurisdiction to prosecute individuals. It has charged Netanyahu and Israel's former Minister of Defence Yoav Gallant with crimes against humanity and war crimes in Gaza for allegedly depriving Palestinians in the enclave of 'objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, and medicine'. Rubio said that the US and Israel are not parties to the Rome Statute of the ICC, and Albanese's actions were therefore 'a gross infringement on the sovereignty of both countries'. He alleged that Albanese had 'spewed unabashed antisemitism, expressed support for terrorism, and open contempt for the United States, Israel, and the West'. Rubio described Albanese's support for the ICC's arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant as 'biased', and accused her of sending 'threatening letters' to various entities, including American companies across different sectors. The sanctions have been imposed under President Donald Trump's Executive Order 14203, 'Imposing Sanctions on the International Criminal Court,' Section 1(a)(ii)(A), signed on February 6, 2025. The order imposed sanctions against individuals associated with the ICC, which it said had 'engaged in illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and its close ally Israel'. This section of the order allows the US to sanction individuals who have 'directly engaged in any effort by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute a protected person without consent of that person's country of nationality'. Last month, the Trump administration sanctioned four ICC judges for 'illegitimate and baseless actions' against the US and its allies. The writer is a summer intern at The Indian Express.
MTV Lebanon
10-07-2025
- Politics
- MTV Lebanon
UN Human Rights Council condemns sanctions on Albanese
UNHRC Ambassador Jurg Lauber has released a statement lamenting the US decision to sanction Albanese for her work probing Israeli abuses in the occupied Palestinian territories. 'I regret the decision of the United States Government to impose sanctions on Ms. Francesca Albanese, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967', Lauber said. 'Ms. Albanese was appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council. Special Rapporteurs are an essential instrument of the Council in fulfilling its mandate to promote and protect all human rights worldwide. I call on all UN Member States to fully cooperate with the Special Rapporteurs and mandate holders of the Council and to refrain from any acts of intimidation or reprisal against them.'
News24
10-07-2025
- Politics
- News24
US accused of ‘rogue state behaviour' after it sanctions UN Israel critic Francesca Albanese
The US sanctioned Francesca Albanese, the United Nations' special rapporteur on human rights. She accused over 60 companies of involvement in supporting Israeli settlements. The Trump administration also imposed sanctions on four judges at the ICC. The United States said on Wednesday it was imposing sanctions on Francesca Albanese, the United Nations' special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, who has been very critical of US ally Israel's war in Gaza. 'Today I am imposing sanctions on UN Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese for her illegitimate and shameful efforts to prompt (International Criminal Court) action against US and Israeli officials, companies, and executives,' Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement. In a post on X late on Wednesday, Albanese wrote that she stood 'firmly and convincingly on the side of justice, as I have always done', without directly mentioning the US sanctions. In a text message to Al Jazeera, she was quoted as dismissing the US move as 'mafia style intimidation techniques'. Albanese, an Italian lawyer and academic, has called on states at the UN Human Rights Council to impose an arms embargo and cut off trade and financial ties with Israel while accusing the US ally of waging a 'genocidal campaign' in Gaza. READ | Israel has faced accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice and of war crimes at the ICC over its devastating military assault on Gaza. Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images Israel denies the accusations and says its campaign amounts to self-defence after a deadly October 2023 Hamas attack. In a report published earlier in July, Albanese accused over 60 companies, including major arms manufacturers and technology firms, of involvement in supporting Israeli settlements and military actions in Gaza. The report called on companies to cease dealings with Israel and for legal accountability for executives implicated in alleged violations of international law. Albanese is one of dozens of independent human rights experts mandated by the UN to report on specific themes and crises. The views expressed by special rapporteurs do not reflect those of the global body as a whole. Just to be sure, on this day more than ever: I stand firmly and convincingly on the side of justice, as I have always done. I come from a country with a tradition of illustrious legal scholars, talented lawyers and corageous judges who have defended justice at great cost and… — Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) July 9, 2025 Rights experts slammed the US sanctions against Albanese. Dylan Williams, vice president for government affairs at the Centre for International Policy think tank, labelled them as 'rogue state behaviour' while Amnesty International said special rapporteurs must be supported and not sanctioned. 'Governments around the world and all actors who believe in the rule-based order and international law must do everything in their power to mitigate and block the effect of the sanctions against Francesca Albanese and more generally to protect the work and independence of Special Rapporteurs,' Amnesty International's Secretary General Agnes Callamard, a former UN special rapporteur, said. Saeed MMT Jaras/Anadolu via Getty Images Since returning to office in January, US President Donald Trump has stopped US engagement with the UN Human Rights Council, extended a halt to funding for the Palestinian relief agency UNRWA and ordered a review of the UN cultural agency UNESCO. He has also announced US plans to quit the Paris climate deal and the World Health Organisation. His administration imposed sanctions on four judges at the ICC in June in retaliation over the war tribunal's issuance of an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a past decision to open a case into alleged war crimes by US troops in Afghanistan.
