National Jewish Advocacy Center calls for Amazon block funds tied to Francesca Albanese’s anti-Israel guide

A distinguished Jewish civil rights group has warned Amazon that promoting a forthcoming guide by a US-sanctioned United Nations official might violate federal sanctions law, and has urged the company to halt associated transactions.

Mark Goldfeder, head of the National Jewish Advocacy Center, said on X that his group notified the retail giant that Francesca Albanese, an Italian human rights lawyer, is barred from receiving funds or other financial advantages.

Albanese is the UN particular rapporteur on the Palestinian territories who sparked a furor after accusing Israel of genocide, apartheid and settler colonialism in UN stories and public statements — claims that Israel and the US have rejected as false and antisemitic.

Mark Goldfeder, head of the National Jewish Advocacy Center, said he has despatched Amazon legal discover relating to the sale of a guide extremely important of Israel. Michael Brochstein/ZUMA Press Wire / SplashNews.com

She is also the writer of “When the World Sleeps: Stories, Words, and Wounds of Palestine,” a assortment of essays and private reflections on Israeli insurance policies in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The hardcover, scheduled for release in April, is at present listed as a bestseller in the human rights category on Amazon’s website.

“Today we issued notice to Amazon and others about potential sanctions-violations connected to @FranceskAlbs new book,” Goldfeder wrote on X earlier this week.

The US sanctioned Albanese in July, with officers alleging she improperly coordinated with the International Criminal Court and engaged in political and financial warfare against the US and Israel.

Goldfeder argues that Albanese’s designation as a Specially Designated National means all of her property and pursuits in property are blocked, barring US firms from transferring funds or offering providers to her without authorization from the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.

“Under federal law, property and interests of Specially Designated Nationals are blocked and may not be transferred or paid out without specific authorization,” he wrote Monday.

Francesca Albanese, an Italian human rights lawyer who serves as UN particular rapporteur on the Palestinian territories, has been sanctioned by the Trump administration. Factstory for MOFA/AFP by way of Getty Images

She is writer of “When the World Sleeps: Stories, Words, and Wounds of Palestine,” a assortment of essays and private reflections on Israeli insurance policies in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Other Press

In his legal discover to Amazon and other distributors, Goldfeder warned that the company’s platform “promotes and sells Ms. Francesca Albanese’s publications, directly enhancing her revenue and conferring a financial benefit,” which he said falls exterior protections for informational supplies and will expose the retailer to civil penalties under US sanctions law.

Goldfeder rejected allegations of censorship, saying the issue isn’t the guide’s content however whether or not US firms could legally conduct business with a sanctioned particular person.

Goldfeder told The Post on Thursday that he plans to share a pattern of the legal notices his group despatched to publishers and distributors and confused that the effort isn’t meant to suppress speech.

He said his group “certainly believe[s] in free speech” and is “not at all trying to ban the book,” however desires firms to grasp how funds tied to the quantity needs to be dealt with under sanctions law.

“She can say whatever she wants but as a sanctioned person, she can’t get paid for it,” Goldfeder said, including that his group hopes sales continue so that proceeds might be positioned in escrow.

He said the funds might finally be transferred to his shoppers in the event that they prevail in a defamation lawsuit his group has filed against Albanese.

Goldfeder said on X that he notified Amazon that Albanese is barred from receiving funds or other financial advantages.

In September, the National Jewish Advocacy Center sued Albanese in Colorado federal courtroom on behalf of Christian Friends of Israeli Communities and Christians for Israel USA.

They accused Albanese of falsely branding the teams as complicit in genocide and battle crimes in a 2025 report circulated after her UN function ended, harming their reputations, endangering supporters and threatening their charitable work.

The go well with seeks damages in addition to a retraction and an order barring her from repeating the claims. It famous Albanese has claimed immunity as a UN official, however the plaintiffs argue that she made the defamatory remarks exterior of her official duties.

Albanese dismissed the latest legal risk, writing on X that the controversy amounted to “more free ads” for her guide and denouncing what she called “the pro-Israel minions” behind the effort.

Albanese’s guide, which will probably be on sale in April, is at present atop the bestseller record on Amazon. Amazon.com

Albanese has confronted mounting skilled fallout in the US.

She was just lately dropped by Georgetown University, which eliminated her from its record of affiliated students and deleted her profile from the college’s web site following the imposition of US sanctions.

Georgetown has not publicly explained the choice, though Albanese has said the transfer was a direct consequence of the sanctions slightly than criticism of her past statements.

The Post has sought remark from Amazon, Albanese and Georgetown.

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