US Christians sue UN rapporteur Francesca Albanese for defamation

American Christian groups filed federal lawsuit against controversial anti-Israel UN rapporteur after she accused charity groups of engaging in “gross human rights violations” and war crimes over their work in Israel.

By World Israel News Staff

Two US-based pro-Israel Christian charity groups have filed a joint lawsuit against a controversial United Nations official accused of antisemitism after she claimed the charities were guilty of “gross human rights violations” over their work in Israel.

On Monday, the National Jewish Advocacy Center (NJAC) filed a federal lawsuit against Francesca Albanese, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Palestinian territories, for defamation, trade libel, and tortious interference.

The suit filed with the Federal District Court in Colorado accuses Albanese of conducting a smear campaign against the Christian Friends of Israeli Communities and Christians for Israel USA, falsely accusing them of war crimes, human rights abuses, and even enabling genocide.

“If a racist antisemite gains a position of power and proceeds to abuse the public platform she enjoys in order to perpetuate lies about American religious organizations for their compassion toward and allyship with the Jewish people and the Jewish State of Israel by smearing them and calling for them to be blacklisted and sanctioned, she can and should be held liable for defamation,” said NJAC attorney Rachel Sebbag.

In June, Albanese published a report accusing foreign businesses and NGOs that work with Israel of facilitating “genocide.”

The lawsuit notes that Albanese also made specific claims regarding Christian charities operating in Israel, writing this past April that they are guilty of war crimes, apartheid, and other crimes against humanity.

“Persecution of Israel, the Jewish people, and their supporters is not new,” said Willem Griffioen, chairman of Christians for Israel International and Christians for Israel USA.

“Albanese’s goal is to cut off our love and support for Israel, and she tramples our freedoms in the process. We share a faith in the God of Israel, and we will be that voice standing for the truth even if we ourselves are being attacked. We will not be silent.”

The briefs filed in the case accuse Albanese of working “to destroy plaintiffs’ reputations and economic wellbeing,” adding that she “spread malicious lies…with cavalier disregard for truth,” and “launched a smear campaign against them due to their support for Jews and Israel.”

After Albanese’s comments, leaders of multiple Christian groups received death threats, the NJAC said.

“Some of the vilest antisemites and terror supporters have sought to shield themselves from accountability for their actions by hiding behind the UN flag,” said Eugene Kontorovich, a professor at George Mason University’s Scalia Law School and a senior research fellow at Heritage Foundation.

“But as UNRWA recently discovered, automatic immunity for anyone claiming a UN affiliation is over. The Trump administration has commendably sanctioned Albanese, but the American citizens she has harmed deserve direct justice.”