A federal judge ruled Wednesday that the State Department violated the First Amendment rights of an Italian woman when it designated her a dangerous foreign national for her pro-Palestinian advocacy efforts to the International Criminal Court.
Francesca Albanese had labeled Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza a “genocide,” called for the ICC to issue an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and urged the international body to pursue investigations of U.S. firms such as Chevron and Lockheed Martin for supporting “apartheid.”
That earned her sanctions from the State Department, including having her U.S. assets froze and barring her entry.
Judge Richard J. Leon, a George W. Bush appointee to the court in Washington, said her activities were protected by the First Amendment.
And he said the protection applied even thought Ms. Albanese was outside the U.S. and isn’t an American citizen. He said the property she owns in the U.S. with her Italian husband and her 12-year-old daughter’s interests are enough to extend the First Amendment to cover her.
“Albanese has done nothing more than speak!” Judge Leon wrote.
The Trump administration had said the need for the U.S. to have a free hand to pursue its foreign policy goals trumped the rights of a noncitizen living abroad.
But Judge Leon said even if the administration had valid goals, its sanctions were too draconian.
