UN rapporteur Francesca Albanese: World is watching a live genocide in Gaza and doing nothing

As Israel's war on Gaza enters its 19th month, the scale of devastation is staggering. Tens of thousands are dead, entire neighbourhoods lie in ruins, and famine threatens a besieged civilian population. Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territory, warns that the world is watching in silence. She says it is paralysed and complicit in what is unfolding.

In an exclusive interview with The New Arab, Albanese delivers a stark message. She says the situation in Gaza is not just a war but a genocide taking place in real time. She blames not only the Israeli military campaign but also the global indifference and support from powerful governments and corporations.

"I do not think there has been anything in modern history since the end of World War Two that is so sadistic and militarised as this attack," she says.

The mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur on Palestine has always been politically difficult. Created in 1993, the same year the Oslo Accords promised a path to Palestinian statehood, the role has faced repeated resistance. Israel routinely denies entry to rapporteurs and disregards their findings. Albanese took on this role during a period of unprecedented violence. Gaza has faced full-scale bombardment, and the West Bank has seen a sharp rise in armed settler attacks and military violence. 

"This mandate has always been under attack, mainly by Israel and sometimes by the US," she says.

Despite efforts to silence her, Albanese's work has gained influence. Her reports are now used by legal teams and human rights advocates in cases accusing Israel of war crimes and genocide. She has emerged as a leading voice in the global movement for accountability.

From the start of her tenure, she has warned of Israel’s strategy not only to occupy Palestinian land but to erase Palestinian life and presence.

"A week after October 8, I warned of the danger of ethnic cleansing," she says. "What we are seeing now is genocide used as a means to an end. It is the destruction of a people who refuse to leave."

She describes Gaza's population as defiant in the face of overwhelming violence. Their refusal to flee, she says, has only led to more aggressive bombing campaigns.

"Palestinians don’t leave, even when everything is destroyed. So the bombing intensified."

The humanitarian consequences are catastrophic. Since mid-March, aid has been blocked from entering Gaza. More than two million people are now surviving without enough food, clean water, or medical supplies.

"Ninety-one percent of Gaza's population is at risk of malnutrition. Sixty thousand children already show signs of cognitive impairment. It is not a future risk. It is happening before our eyes," she says.

Albanese does not place blame solely on Israel. She holds the wider international system responsible, especially the states and corporations that continue to support or profit from the occupation.

In her upcoming report, she focuses on the role of multinational companies. These include arms producers, surveillance technology firms, cloud service providers, banks, construction companies, and even academic institutions.

"If Palestine were a crime scene, it would bear all our fingerprints," she says. "Even charities and universities are involved. Supply chains, demolition contractors, tech firms. All complicit."

This deep complicity, she argues, is what has allowed Israel to act without restraint.

Albanese also critiques the broader failure of international law. While she believes the legal framework remains strong, she says states are not enforcing it. Institutions designed to uphold the law have become selective in their application.

"Gaza is a graveyard, first of Palestinians, then of international law," she says. "Not because the law itself is weak, but because states refuse to enforce it."

She says the United Nations has become paralysed. The return of Donald Trump to the presidency and the rise of far-right movements in Europe have further weakened political will across the board.

"Everyone is afraid of Trump. No one wants to show leadership," she says. "Italy lived through twenty years of fascism. People can adapt to dictatorship. That is the danger."

Albanese is openly critical of Western governments that issue symbolic gestures while continuing to arm Israel. She dismisses French President Macron's talk of recognising a Palestinian state as meaningless.

"It's a distraction. If you want to save lives, stop trading with Israel. I am not asking for military intervention. Just a trade freeze. But even that seems too much," she says.

She is equally unimpressed by the UK’s decision to suspend only a small portion of its arms export licences to Israel, which she says is "not enough".

While governments continue to fail, Albanese praises the persistence of ordinary people. She credits the global movement for Palestine with helping to slow down Israel's campaign of displacement.

"The global movement is the last fortress for international law. It is the antibody in the system. Protests matter because governments pretend not to listen, but they do listen," she says. "And I believe this movement has slowed the ethnic cleansing."

Albanese has also faced personal backlash. She has been banned from speaking at German universities, disinvited without notice, and targeted by far-right politicians. She recalls seeing riot police at events and being told which words could not be used.

"This is the era of silencing. Riot police entered venues where I was speaking. In one case, they even told organisers which words not to use. It is frightening," she says.

Despite being declared persona non grata by Israel, Albanese still hopes to return to Palestine. She says this is both a personal desire and a professional duty.

"I will go wherever I can, from Tulkarm to Hebron, Ni’lin to Bil’in. I can’t name every place because I worry settlers will retaliate. But I will go," she says.

Her tone softens when she speaks of Gaza's people. She recalls their resilience, their hospitality, and the cultural depth she witnessed during her visits.

"Gaza is a place where I spent little time, but I remember its hospitality. There is a poetry in its people. Some of the children I interviewed for my reports are now gone. Others are still alive and still want to speak to me," she says.

"They want their voices heard. I will always be there for them, even if I am not there in person."

After documenting war crimes, warning of ethnic cleansing, and exposing international complicity, Albanese makes clear that the root of the crisis is not only the current war but the decades-long occupation itself. She argues that no amount of aid or reconstruction will matter without addressing the core injustice.

"The occupation must end. Its military rule, its settlements, its control over land and lives. Palestinians must be allowed to exist as a people."