Serbia has sharply condemned Francesca Albanese, the U.N. special rapporteur on the Palestinian territories, for what it described as “unacceptable interference in internal affairs,” after she criticized the Balkan country’s military cooperation with Israel.
The diplomatic dispute follows Albanese’s visit to Belgrade this week, during which she accused Serbian authorities of collaborating “without shame” with Israel, claiming Serbia is among its strongest allies and that Serbian weapons are being used in Gaza.
“We consider the statements made by the United Nations Special Rapporteur, Mrs. Albanese, to be unbalanced and activist in nature, and as such inappropriate to the mandate she holds,” Serbia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Wednesday. “It is particularly concerning when such assessments are intertwined with her comments that directly encroach upon Serbia’s internal political matters. This is not the role of any international rapporteur and constitutes an unacceptable interference in the internal affairs of our country.”
Serbia and Israel maintain close ties, including growing cooperation in the security and defense sectors.
Albanese, who has faced longstanding criticism over alleged antisemitic remarks and rhetoric against Israel, has drawn international backlash in recent months. Earlier this year, she referred to Israel as a “common enemy of humanity” at a conference in Qatar.
She has also been criticized for downplaying the Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, in which some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed—the deadliest assault on the Jewish people since the Holocaust—saying the events should be “put in context.” She later asserted that the United States is “subjugated by the Jewish lobby.”
The controversy comes after the United Nations Human Rights Council rejected efforts by U.S. and European lawmakers to remove her from her post.
The Trump administration has imposed sanctions on Albanese, citing what it described as her “campaign of political and economic warfare” against the United States and Israel.
Lawmakers in the United States, France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic, along with leading American Jewish organizations, have called for her dismissal.
The U.S. Mission to the United Nations has also stated that Albanese’s “malignant antisemitism and support for terrorism” render her unfit for the role, urging her removal.
