The Lebanese news platform Beirut Review reported that the American University of Beirut prevented Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, from entering its campus to give a lecture, citing “failure to pass compliance procedures”, In a move that aligns with the Israeli campaign to silence Albanese’s voice defending Palestinian rights.
According to a report by the Beirut Review platform, Albanese was scheduled to speak at the American University of Beirut (AUB), After receiving an invitation from the PLSC (an academic research center based at the American University that studies Palestinian issues), the university administration did not grant the UN rapporteur, known for her supportive stances on the Palestinian cause, permission to give the lecture, so it was decided that she would give it at Saint Joseph University (USJ).
The Lebanese news platform said that this step sets a precedent, reflecting a blatant retreat from all the rhetoric that the university has always promoted about freedom of expression and encouraging dialogue. In doing so, the American University dropped its mask of academic neutrality and showed a clear political and racist bias against the rights of the Palestinians, practically aligning itself with the Israeli narrative and its soft tools of oppression.
Albanese experience
Examining Albanese’s previous stances dispels any ambiguity about the true reasons for this ban. Her legal and academic experience led her to advocate for Palestinian rights, Through her page on the X platform, she highlighted the suffering of the Palestinian people and declared her refusal to give press interviews that included questions about whether she believed the number of victims of the massacres committed in Gaza, “as if the burned children needed proof.” She also published a book in Italian titled “When the World Sleeps… Stories, Words, and Wounds from Palestine”. Consequently, Israel accused her of anti-Semitism.
On April 5, 2025, Israel, Hungary and Argentina sought to prevent her from obtaining a new 3-year term, but 47 members of the council gave her their confidence. The administration of US President Donald Trump also imposed sanctions on it on July 7, 2025, for its “illegal and shameful efforts to urge the International Criminal Court to take action against US and Israeli officials, companies, and executives,” according to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
