US gets bullet that killed journalist
The Palestinian Authority yesterday said it has given the bullet that killed Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh to American forensic experts, taking a step toward resolving a standoff with Israel over the investigation into her death.
The announcement came just over a week before US President Joe Biden is to visit Israel and the occupied West Bank for meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders. It signalled that both sides may be working to find a solution to the deadlock.
Abu Akleh, a veteran correspondent who was well known throughout the Arab world, was fatally shot while covering an Israeli military raid on May 11 in the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank.
The Palestinians, along with Abu Akleh’s colleagues who were with her at the time, say she was killed by Israeli fire. The Israeli army says that she was caught in the crossfire of a battle with Palestinian
gunmen, and that it is impossible to determine which side killed her without analysing the bullet.
Israel says it has identified the rifle that may have shot her, but that it cannot draw any conclusions unless it is compared to the bullet. The Palestinians have refused to turn over the bullet, saying they don’t trust Israel. Rights groups say Israel has a poor record investigating shootings of Palestinians by its troops, with probes languishing for months or years before they are quietly closed.
The Palestinian attorney general, Akram al-Khateeb, said the bullet was given to US experts ‘‘for technical work’’.
He reiterated the Palestinian refusal to share the bullet with the Israelis but said the Palestinians welcome the participation of any international bodies to ‘‘help us confirm the truth’’.
‘‘We are confident and certain of our investigations and the results we have reached,’’ he said.
It was not immediately clear what the American experts could