Al Jazeera reporter killed during West Bank raid
JERUSALEM — Veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, one of the satellite channel’s best-known reporters, was shot and killed on Wednesday while covering an Israeli military raid in the occupied West Bank. The broadcaster and two reporters who were with her blamed Israeli forces.
Israel’s defense minister, Benny Gantz, promised a transparent investigation, and said he was in touch with U.S. and Palestinian officials. The Israeli military initially suggested that Ms. Abu Akleh might have been killed by stray fire from Palestinians, but Mr. Gantz was more cautious Wednesday evening. “We are trying to figure out exactly what happened,” he said. “I don’t have final conclusions.”
He said Israel asked the Palestinian medical team that performed a preliminary autopsy to hand over the fatal bullet for further examination. The head of the Palestinian forensics institute, Rayan al-Ali, said earlier Wednesday that the bullet was deformed, and that he could not yet determine who fired it.
Ms. Abu Akleh’s death could further strain often rocky relations between the army and the international media.
Ms. Abu Akleh, 51, was a respected and familiar face in the Middle East, known for her coverage on Al Jazeera Arabic of the harsh realities
of Israel’s open-ended military occupation of the Palestinians, now in its 55th year. She was widely recognized
in the West Bank and was also a U.S. citizen.
“I am very sorry for what happened,” Mr. Gantz told reporters. “Currently we do not know what was the direct cause of Shireen’s death. We are very decisive to have a full-scale investigation ... and we hope to get Palestinian cooperation on this issue.”
Al Jazeera accused Israel of “deliberately targeting and killing our colleague.” Palestinian journalists who were with Ms. Abu Akleh at the time said they made their presence known to Israeli soldiers, and that they did not see militants in the area.
Ms. Abu Akleh’s producer, Palestinian journalist Ali Samoudi, was hospitalized in stable condition after being shot in the back. He said any suggestion they were shot by militants was a “complete lie.”
Ms. Abu Akleh’s death reverberated across the region. Arab governments condemned the killing.
There was also an outpouring of grief in the West Bank. In Ramallah, the seat of the Palestinian autonomy government, Ms. Abu Akleh’s body, draped in a Palestinian flag and covered by a wreath of flowers, was carried through downtown streets. Hundreds chanted, “with our spirit, with our blood, we will redeem you, Shireen.”
On Thursday, a procession was to take the body for burial in Jerusalem, where Ms. Abu Akleh was born.
In east Jerusalem, dozens of mourners gathered at the family home to honor her. Lina Abu Akleh, her niece, called her “my best friend, my second mom, my companion.”
“I never thought this day would come, where the news would be about her and she won’t be the one covering the news,” she said.
At one point, a group of Israeli police entered the home, where they were immediately met with shouts of “killers” and “occupiers” and chants to “get out.” It was not immediately clear why the police came, and the officers quickly left.
Palestinians gathered outside the family’s house on Wednesday evening, some holding Palestinian flags and posters with the journalist’s photo. When the group walked toward a main thoroughfare, Israeli police tried to stop them and scuffles ensued. Five Palestinians were hurt and about half a dozen were detained.
Ms. Abu Akleh was killed by a shot to the head while on the outskirts of the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank, known as a bastion of militants. Israel has conducted near-daily raids in Jenin in recent weeks following a series of deadly attacks inside Israel carried out by militants from the area.
Mr. Gantz said Israeli forces came under attack from indiscriminate fire by Palestinian militants from several directions. The army released a bodycam video of forces in the town while heavy fire is heard in the background.
Mr. Gantz described the situation as chaotic. He said the soldiers at the scene had all been questioned, but that the investigation could only make progress with the cooperation of the Palestinian forensic team.
The outcome of Israel’s military investigation will be closely watched. The International Criminal Court has opened an investigation into possible war crimes by Israel in both the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Israel does not recognize the court’s jurisdiction and has called the investigation unfair and antisemitic. One of its key arguments against the probe has been that its military justice system is capable of investigating itself.
The findings of its probe into Ms. Abu Akleh’s death could draw new scrutiny. Hussein Al Sheikh, a top Palestinian official, said the Palestinians would transfer its information on the case to the court.
In New York, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, called Ms. Abu Akleh’s death “really horrifying” and called for a transparent investigation. She said protecting American citizens and journalists was “our highest priority.”
Ms. Thomas-Greenfield said Ms. Abud Akleh did “an extraordinary interview” with her in the West Bank last November. “I left there feeling extraordinary respect for her,” she said.
The U.N. Human Rights office urged for an “independent, transparent investigation into her killing. Impunity must end.”
The White House also called for a thorough probe. “Investigating attacks on independent media and prosecuting those responsible are of paramount importance,” deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.