The US government on Wednesday lifted sanctions it had imposed on Francesca Albanese, a UN independent expert on the occupied Palestinian territories who has been a vocal critic of Israel, in compliance with a court order.
A brief statement posted on the Treasury Department's website said the sanctions against Albanese had now been lifted. She had been placed on an international blacklist and barred from using credit cards and conducting various banking transactions.
"Protecting freedom of expression is always in the public interest," Judge Richard Lyon said in a ruling last week ordering the government to lift the sanctions.
Francesca Albanese, a 49-year-old Italian lawyer, has criticized Israel's treatment of Palestinians since she was appointed as the UN Human Rights Council's special rapporteur on the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has accused him of recommending that the International Criminal Court (ICC) issue an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
