The UN special rapporteur for human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories has defended the Palestinian resistance group Hamas as a political force that won democratic elections in 2006 and acted as the "de facto authority" in the Gaza Strip.
"Hamas is a political force that won the 2006 elections, whether we like it or not," Francesca Albanese said in a video shared on the US social media company X.
Albanese described the 2006 Palestinian elections won by Hamas as "the most democratic elections (in Palestine)."
She noted that Hamas established a governing system in Gaza that included schools, public facilities and hospitals.
"It was simply what we call authority, technically the de facto authority."
Albanese stressed that "when you think of Hamas, you should not necessarily think of people slitting throats, heavily armed or fighters. That is not the case."
In January 2006, the Palestinian Central Elections Commission announced that Hamas swept the parliamentary elections, winning 76 out of 132 seats in the Palestinian Legislative Council.
Following Hamas' victory, Israel imposed a blockade on the Gaza Strip by land, sea and air that continues to this day.
The Israeli army, rejecting international calls for a ceasefire, has pursued a brutal war in the Gaza Strip since October 2023, killing nearly 62,000 Palestinians.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
