UN Special Rapporteur Calls for Severing Economic Ties with Israel Over Gaza Conflict

Francesca Albanese, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territory, has urged the international community to cut all commercial and financial ties with Israel. This includes halting international aid to the country and imposing a complete arms embargo. Albanese made these remarks during a speech at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Thursday, where she described Israel’s economic system as an “economy of genocide.”

Presenting a new report, Albanese highlighted several companies allegedly complicit in supporting Israel’s oppression and violence against Palestinians. The report, titled *From Economy of Occupation to Economy of Genocide*, details how major corporations function as a “corporate machine” that sustains Israel’s occupation and settlement expansion in Palestinian territories. These entities, according to the report, facilitate the displacement of Palestinians and the establishment of settlements.

“The situation in the occupied Palestinian territory is dire,” Albanese stated. “Israel is responsible for one of the most brutal genocides in modern history.” Since October 7, 2023, Israel’s military operations in Gaza have resulted in approximately 57,000 Palestinian deaths, displaced hundreds of thousands, and reduced entire cities and villages to rubble, according to UN estimates. Hospitals and schools have also been targeted, with 85% of Gaza now under Israeli military control. The report names several entities, including arms manufacturers, major technology firms, heavy machinery producers, and financial institutions, accused of aiding Israel’s illegal settlement expansion, providing surveillance technology, or contributing to the killing of Palestinians. Albanese noted that while political leaders fail to pressure Israel to end the bloodshed in Gaza, many corporations continue to profit from the occupation, apartheid, and what she termed a genocide. Speaking to journalists in Geneva, Albanese revealed that since the onset of the Gaza war, the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange has surged by at least 200%, adding over $22 billion to the market. Meanwhile, Palestinians face catastrophic conditions. “One nation prospers while another is annihilated,” she said. “Clearly, genocide is profitable for some.”

The report calls for accountability, urging the international community to take legal action against private entities involved in violating international law. It also highlights Israel’s military-industrial complex as the “backbone” of its economy, with prolonged occupation and military campaigns serving as testing grounds for advanced military technology. Albanese pointed out that arms manufacturers supplying Israel with sophisticated weaponry have reaped record profits, with Israel dropping 85,000 tons of explosives on Gaza—six times more powerful than the Hiroshima bomb