(TJV NEWS) The United Nations Human Rights Office has been accused of disseminating intentionally misleading information regarding the funding of a trip taken by Francesca Albanese, the UN’s special rapporteur for Palestinian rights. This comes after claims surfaced that pro-Hamas organizations funded her travel.

In November 2023, Albanese embarked on a politically-charged tour of Australia and New Zealand. The visit, which included attending a fundraiser for a Palestinian lobby group, meeting pro-Palestinian politicians and civil society members, and pushing New Zealand’s sovereign wealth fund to divest from Israel, raised questions about the sources of its funding.

Albanese has faced accusations of antisemitism from governments including the U.S., France, and Germany. In response to the claims about her trip, the Australian Friends of Palestine Association — which has praised Hamas figure Yahya Sinwar — publicly declared that it had “sponsored” Albanese’s visit. Other lobbying groups such as Free Palestine Melbourne, the Australian Palestinian Advocacy Network, and Palestinian Christians in Australia also stated their support for the trip.

i24NEWS made repeated inquiries to various UN officials and departments for clarification on whether these pro-Hamas organizations financed the trip. Albanese has maintained that the UN funded the entire trip, calling claims of external funding “egregiously false.”

However, following months of investigation, the UN Human Rights Office eventually acknowledged that Albanese did indeed receive some external funding for her travel. In a statement to i24NEWS, the UN Human Rights Office insisted that “her travel was funded by the UN,” although they failed to provide any documentation supporting this claim.

The controversy deepened when the UN’s Coordination Committee of Special Procedures, which is tasked with investigating allegations against Albanese, confirmed in July that Albanese had accepted “partial external funding for internal trips within Australia and New Zealand.” This statement contradicted previous claims by the UN that the entire trip was financed by the UN.

The discrepancy between “travel to” a country and “travel within” a country was used by the UN to justify its earlier denial of external funding. This distinction, however, was not made clear for over a year and a half, prompting critics to argue that the UN was deliberately avoiding acknowledging the involvement of Hamas-affiliated groups.

Despite the new admission of partial external funding, the UN has continued to withhold detailed information about which organizations contributed to Albanese’s trip and how much they donated. When questioned about these inconsistencies, the UN’s Special Procedures Media Office called the accusations “unfair” but did not address why the UN had failed to mention external funding earlier or provide clarity on the funding sources.

Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, was asked whether Guterres would support releasing full details of the trip’s funding. He responded that the UN supports transparency in the activities of any official affiliated with the organization, but the request for further clarity remains unaddressed.

As the controversy unfolds, the UN continues to face scrutiny over its handling of this matter, with critics demanding greater accountability and transparency regarding the funding of Albanese’s trip and the involvement of pro-Hamas groups.