Italian Cultural Icons Rally Behind Francesca Albanese Amid U.S. Sanctions
Rome: Actors, writers, musicians, and intellectuals from the Italian cultural sector are rallying in support of Francesca Albanese, the United Nations Special Rapporteur for the Palestinians, who has been sanctioned by the United States for her documentation work in the occupied Palestinian territories.
According to Ansa News Agency, the cultural and philosophical project Tlon, led by Andrea Colamedici and Maura Gancitano, has spearheaded an initiative to write an open letter addressed to President Sergio Mattarella, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani. The letter urges these leaders to defend Albanese, an Italian citizen, who has been sanctioned while performing her UN duties. It also calls for the Italian Parliament to adopt a unified motion advocating for Albanese’s diplomatic protection.
The letter, initially signed by prominent figures in Italian cinema, including Pierfrancesco Favino, Stefano Accorsi, Valeria Golino, Luca Zingaretti, Valerio Mastandrea, and Claudio Santamaria, has garnered significant support. Cultural icons like Serena Dandini, Lella Costa, and Alessandro Bergonzoni, along with intellectuals such as art historian Tomaso Montanari and writer Lidia Ravera, have also added their signatures. Influential contemporary musicians such as Marracash, Francesca Michielin, Cosmo, and La Rappresentante di Lista have joined the cause, bringing the total number of signatories to 80.
The document condemns the sanctions imposed on July 9, 2025, by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, labeling them as “an explicit attempt to divert world attention from the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza,” where over 60,000 Palestinians, more than half of whom are women and children, have died. The letter asserts that allowing sanctions against human rights documenters could perpetuate impunity and stresses that “Silence on Gaza is complicity.”
In a show of solidarity, Italian street artist Harry Gleb recently created a mural in Rome bearing the message “Hands Off Francesca Albanese.”