UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese has once again been targeted, this time by French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot, for her speech at the Al Jazeera Forum in Doha on Saturday, in which she denounced the entire complicit system that supported Israel’s genocide in Gaza. The term “common enemy”, which Albanese used to describe how involved the international community has been in furthering genocide in Gaza, was taken out of context and framed as a direct targeting of Israel.

“France unreservedly condemns the outrageous and reprehensible remarks made by Francesca Albanese, which are directed not at the Israeli government, whose policies may be criticized, but at Israel as a people and as a nation, which is absolutely unacceptable,” Barrot stated. France is calling for Albanese’s resignation from her position as UN Special Rapporteur. 

It did not take long for France to find a common goal with the US. 

Nothing in Albanese’s speech singled out Israel as the common enemy of humanity. At this point, after two years of Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza, it is a belated recognition that the international community has enabled colonial violence and genocide through all means at its disposal. Diplomatically, the international community strengthened Israel by guaranteeing it not only impunity but also the required assistance to commit genocide.

The focal point of Albanese’s speech was the international complicity enabling Israel to commit genocide. If history is taken into consideration, the current complicity is clearly built on the earlier legitimising of the Zionist colonial project in Palestine. 

The focal point of Albanese’s speech was the international complicity enabling Israel to commit genocide. If history is taken into consideration, the current complicity is clearly built on the earlier legitimising of the Zionist colonial project in Palestine. 

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The international community knew what colonialism would unleash in Palestine. At the expense of the Palestinian population, which was ethnically cleansed, massacred, and forcibly displaced, the UN supported the most vile of international law violations. Forcing the Palestinian people to remain voiceless and subjugate themselves to international impositions, the UN supported an entire enterprise that slowly but surely worked its way towards genocide. Israeli colonialism is a threat first and foremost to Palestinians. Israel’s absence of respect for sovereignty of any country – targeted assassinations abroad are one component – make it dangerous for any country in the world. But as Albanese pointed out, without international complicity, Israel would not operate on the same levels of power it does today. 

So when Barrot is taking issue with Albanese’s statements and misinterpreting them as fodder for Israel’s security narrative, what is he really silencing?

In very accessible terms, Albanese laid out the workings of the international community and how these enabled genocide.

In very accessible terms, Albanese laid out the workings of the international community and how these enabled genocide.

The international community is complicit and France does not like the implication. By intentionally misinterpreting Albanese’s words, France maintained Israel’s purportedly victimised stance, although a superior military power can never be a victim if not to a higher military power. On the other hand, France is issuing a sinister warning –  that it will silence any voice that dares to articulate the wider framework supporting colonialism and genocide. 

Barrot, however, should realise that when genocide is delivered in real-time viewing, and investigative journalism uncovered world leaders’ complicity in Israel’s genocide, corrupt international power can no longer rest on its own side of imbalance. 

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