Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian areas, appeared to equate Israel and Hamas on Sunday, despite the latter being a terrorist group. She also cast doubt on their execution, all but doubting that Hamas killed them after 10 months in captivity." Whether the Israeli #hostages found dead in a Gaza tunnel were executed or killed, this is yet another heinous crime that must be accounted for."
[edited] Whether the Israeli #hostages found dead in a Gaza tunnel were executed or killed, this is yet another heinous crime that must be accounted for.
Condoleances and solidarity to all those who are mourning their beloved ones.
May all hostages, whomever their captors,…
— Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) September 2, 2024
Addressing the execution of Israeli hostages by the Islamic Gaza rulers and the subsequent discovery of their bodies in a Gaza tunnel Saturday night, Albanese said condemned the incident as a "heinous crime" but refused to attack Hamas or even mention it, only noting that she was against their killing "regardless of whether the hostages were executed or killed by other means." Albanese's official title is United Nations special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories.
She went on to say, "Condoleances [sic] and solidarity to all those who are mourning their beloved ones. May all hostages, whomever their captors, return soon to the love of their families and community. #freethehostages – both Israelis and Palestinians."
Israelis have been mourning th edeath of six hostages in recent days after the IDF and Shin Bet retrieved the bodies of Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, and Staff Sergeant Ori Danino from a tunnel in Rafah. These individuals were abducted on October 7 and subsequently killed by Hamas in Gaza, either on the day of their recovery or in the days leading up to it.
Albanese has been staunchly anti-Israel in her tweets, all but ignoring the Hamas atrocities and their indiscrimnant attacks on civilians. The UN Secretary General António Guterres has also been a vocal critic of Israel and has blamed it in part for Hamas' actions. This has drawn angry responses from Israel and a call for his registration.
