Shirin Abu AklehoA Palestinian-American reporter who covered the Middle East conflict for more than 25 years was shot dead on Wednesday during an Israeli military raid in the West Bank city of Jenin. Journalists who were with him, including one who was shot and wounded, said Israeli forces fired upon them, although they were clearly identifiable as journalists.
Israel says it is investigating the incident. It was initially suggested that she may have been shot by Palestinian terrorists without providing evidence, but has since backed off. Israel is calling for a joint investigation with the Palestinian Authority, which administers parts of the West Bank, and cooperating with it on security.
Palestinian President Mahmood Abbas Angrily rejected that offer, “We hold the Israeli occupation authorities fully responsible for his murder.”
“They can’t hide the truth with this crime,” Abbas said in an address with his body lying alongside a Palestinian flag in the West Bank city of Ramallah, where the Palestinian Authority is headquartered.
“They are the ones who committed the crime, and because we don’t trust them, we will go to the International Criminal Court immediately,” Abbas said. The ICC launched an investigation into possible Israeli war crimes a year ago.
On May 11, 2022, Shirin Abu Akleh was killed while covering a raid in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. (Al Jazeera website)
Hussein al-Sheikh, a senior aide to Abbas, said the Palestinians would conduct their own independent investigation and report the results “with high transparency”. He turned down Israel’s request to do his ballistic analysis on the bullet.
Abu Akleh was killed while covering an Israeli military raid in Jenin, which has emerged as a militant stronghold in recent weeks as Palestinians have carried out a series of deadly attacks and Israeli military raids in the occupied West Bank. Have raided.
Qatar-based Al Jazeera accused Israel of deliberately killing him and vowed to take legal action. Journalists accompanying him said there were no Palestinian terrorists in the area.
Israeli authorities initially suggested that Abu Akleh had been killed by terrorist fire and released a video showing gunmen firing at Israeli forces in a narrow alleyway inside the Jenin refugee camp. They later backtracked when an Israeli human rights group released their own video showing the shooting site several hundred meters away from where Abu Akleh was killed.
His death caused a wave of mourning in the Arab world. The 51-year-old was known as a veteran on-air correspondent for Al Jazeera’s Arabic-language channel. His reporting shines a light on the harsh realities of the Israeli military regime, which is well into its sixth decade not in sight. She was also an American citizen.
Her body was to be brought for burial on Friday to Jerusalem, where she was born.
The killing drew international condemnation and widespread calls for accountability. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for “an independent and transparent investigation” to ensure that those responsible are held accountable.
Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz on Wednesday promised such an investigation, saying he was in contact with US and Palestinian officials and looked forward to cooperation between Israel and the Palestinians.
“We are trying to find out what really happened,” he said. “I don’t have a final conclusion.”
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas bids farewell to Al Jazeera journalist Shirin Abu Aqleh, who was killed during an Israeli raid in Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank (Reuters)
Abu Akleh’s death could spark a new investigation into Israel’s military justice system, which is being investigated as part of an ICC investigation. This threatened to further strain the often strained relationship between the military and the international media.
Rights groups say Israel rarely investigates deadly encounters with Palestinians, and when it does, it often inflicts generous punishments.
His death comes amid a wave of Israeli-Palestinian violence that has fueled tensions at a major Jerusalem holy site.
At least 18 people have been killed in Palestinian attacks in recent weeks, as well as more than 30 Palestinians, most of whom have been involved in attacks or clashes with Israeli forces. Among the slain Palestinians were an unarmed woman and at least two apparent passersby, feeding criticism that Israel often uses excessive force.