‘Not a Crime’ to Kill an Israeli Soldier, UN Official Says
21st December 2023
A United Nations official said in an interview last week that Palestinians who kill Israeli soldiers are not guilty of crimes because such killings are in line with their “right to resist,” in the latest controversial comments by the anti-Israel official.
“If the Palestinians target civilian objects, they commit war crimes,” said Francesca Albanese, U.N. special rapporteur for the Palestinian territories, in an interview on the podcast Makdisi Street. “If they target military objects, they do not commit war crimes—they are in line with acts of resistance.”
Albanese went on to criticize “Western media” outlets that have condemned “every Palestinian action,” including attacks on soldiers.
“The killing of soldiers—it’s, I mean, frankly, it’s a tragedy, but it’s not a crime,” Albanese said. “Instead, very often, when Palestinians manage to attack soldiers, they are portrayed as terrorists. And this is a misunderstanding that needs to be addressed.”