Albanese calls for suspension of relations with Israel and demands facilitation of aid entry to Gaza

The UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Francesca Albanese, stated that Israel has no legal authority to prevent humanitarian organizations and aid workers from entering the Gaza Strip and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories. Albanese, in a post on her X account, called on countries to suspend their relations with Israel until it complies with international law, considering this step as a starting point for achieving peace.

She added, "Israel has no legal authority to prevent humanitarian aid workers from entering Gaza and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories. The occupation is illegal and must end completely and unconditionally, as confirmed by the International Court of Justice in 2024. States must suspend their relations until Israel complies with international law."

The UN official also addressed Israel's non-renewal of the visa for the spokesperson of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Gaza, Olga Cherevko, preventing her from entering the besieged strip.

Albanese considered this step part of a recurring pattern of de facto restrictions on UN aid workers and international NGOs, "especially those perceived as being too outspoken about what they witness on the ground."

She stressed that humanitarian workers "have a duty to bear witness when international law is violated."

Increasing international pressure

Albanese's statements come as 9 European countries, along with Canada and Japan, call on Israel to commit to opening crossings and lifting restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.

A joint statement by these countries called on the Israeli government to fully commit to facilitating the delivery of humanitarian aid to all parts of Gaza and the West Bank, in accordance with international law, noting Israel's approval of the twenty-point plan proposed by US President Donald Trump, which stipulates the entry and distribution of aid under the supervision of the United Nations and the Red Crescent and without interference.

The statement affirmed that the humanitarian situation in the Strip remains extremely dire, and that current supplies do not meet the basic needs of the population, calling on Israel to ensure that international NGOs are able to operate in Gaza.

The countries also demanded the reopening of all crossings, including the announced plans to reopen the Rafah crossing in both directions, and the lifting of restrictions on the import of humanitarian materials, including those classified as dual-use, which are essential for humanitarian relief operations and early recovery.

Since May 2024, Israel has controlled the Palestinian side of the crossing as part of a genocidal war it launched on the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023, and which has lasted for more than two years.

Israel also continues to violate the ceasefire agreement in effect since October 10, 2025, which has led to the martyrdom of 492 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health, in parallel with preventing the entry of agreed-upon quantities of food, medicine, medical supplies, and shelter materials.

The reopening of the crossing is one of the requirements of the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement, and it was supposed to begin immediately after the agreement was signed on October 10 last year, but the occupation did not abide by it, and linked its operation to the return of all the bodies of its prisoners held in the Strip.

The occupation army announced on Monday the recovery of the body of the last Israeli prisoner in Gaza, a step Benjamin Netanyahu described as an unprecedented achievement, while Hamas considered it a complete closure of the prisoner and body exchange track.