Francesca Albanese, the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in the occupied West Bank and the besieged Gaza Strip

United Nations, April 26 (RHC)-- UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territory Francesca Albanese has called on the international community to immediately impose oil sanctions and an arms embargo against Israel.  "At this point, Israel has reneged on its international obligations to a degree that warrants an imperative implementation of immediate and unconditional sanctions which should entail first and foremost an arms and oil embargo," Francesca Albanese said during a press conference on Thursday.

Albanese accused the United States and certain other Western states of being accomplice to Israel's crimes by sending military aid and weapons.  "Complicity with genocide is a crime on its own under the Genocide Convention, so definitely interested in investigating to what extent, the aid - political and military aid that has been granted to Israel by a number of countries primarily the United States, might amount to complicity.  What I can tell you for sure is that this support is in clear violation, is in clear breach with the International Court of Justice interim order that ordered the suspension, among others, of the cessation of acts that might amount to genocide and unhindered access for the Palestinians to humanitarian aid.”

In January, the United Nations' top court ordered the Israeli regime to take all measures within its power to prevent genocide in Gaza.

Albanese further said the European Union should impose sanctions on Israel, not merely on extremist settlers. "Settlers operate as part of Israel's expansionism over what remains of historic Palestine," Albanese said. "So it is Israel, not settlers per se, [that has] to be targeted by sanctions."

Elsewhere in her remarks, the UN expert further said countries must do everything in their power to prevent ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.  "Israeli policies expanding the occupied Palestinian territory are unquestionably endangering Palestinian existence on their land, or what remains of their land. The focus of the international community must zero in on the most likely implication of the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians and states must do everything in their power to prevent it."

Last month, Albanese told the UN rights body in Geneva that she believed that Israel's military campaign in Gaza since October 7 amounts to genocide.

Palestinians on Thursday mourned people killed in Israeli bombardment of Rafah, the crowded city in the southern Gaza Strip, where Israel says it is advancing plans for a ground invasion.  

At the city's Najjar Hospital, among the mourners were two men crouching, grief-stricken, in front of a white body bag.

Those killed in an Israeli strike on Rafah included Abdallah Nabhan, 33, who worked for Belgium's Enabel development agency.  Brussels said it would summon Israel's ambassador to explain the death.

Palestinian journalist Mohammad Bassam al-Jamal was killed along with his family members in an attack on their house in the city of Rafah. His death brings to 139 the number of journalists killed in the Gaza war.