Independent probe points to Israeli fire in journalist’s death
JERUSALEM — As Israel and the Palestinians wrangle over the investigation into the killing of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, several independent groups have launched their own probes.
One open-source research team said its initial findings lent support to Palestinian witnesses who said she was killed by Israeli fire.
The outcome of these investigations could help shape international opinion over who is responsible for Abu Akleh’s death, particularly if an official Israeli military probe drags on. Narratives from Israel and the Palestinians has put Israel on the defensive.
Abu Akleh, a Palestinian American and a 25-year veteran of the satellite channel, was killed last Wednesday while covering an Israeli military raid in the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. She was a household name across the Arab world, known for documenting the hardship of Palestinian life under Israeli rule, now in its sixth decade.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday said he had spoken to Abu Akleh’s family to express condolences and respect for her work “as well as the need to have an immediate and credible investigation” into her death.
Palestinian officials and witnesses, including journalists who were with her, say she was killed by army fire. The military, after initially saying Palestinian gunmen might have been responsible, later backtracked and now says she may also have been hit by errant Israeli fire.
Israel has called for a joint investigation with the Palestinians, saying the bullet must be analyzed by ballistics experts to reach firm conclusions. Palestinian officials have refused, saying they don’t trust Israel, and have invited other countries to join the investigation.
Over the weekend, Bellingcat, a Dutch-based international consortium of researchers, published an analysis of video and audio evidence gathered on social media. The material came from both Palestinian and Israeli military sources, and the analysis looked at such factors as time stamps, the locations of the videos, shadows and a forensic audio analysis of gunshots.
The group found that while gunmen and Israeli soldiers were both in the area, the evidence supported witness accounts that Israeli fire killed Abu Akleh.
When Lebanon’s economic collapse accelerated six months ago, Abdul-Hamid Yamout lost his job at Beirut’s international airport — and with it all sense of security.
Since then, he’s struggled to provide for his family, worrying about his two children. On Sunday, he used the ballot box to punish the ruling class by voting for a list of independents.
“I will give them my vote because they want change,” he said, recalling his participation in nationwide protests against government corruption in 2019.
Yamout, 39, was among those voting for a new parliament Sunday, hoping to unseat the entrenched politicians they blame for the crisis.
A new crop of candidates from the protest movement are running against them, hoping to at least score a breakthrough by picking up a few seats. But they are divided and lack the money,
Lebanon election:
experience and other advantages held by traditional political rulers.
The vote took place against the backdrop of an economic meltdown that is rapidly transforming the country, triggering the biggest wave of emigration since its 15-year civil war ended in 1990.
Results are expected Monday.
Somalis vote: A former Somali president voted out of power in 2017 has been returned to the nation’s top office after defeating the incumbent leader in a protracted contest decided by legislators in a third round of voting late Sunday.
Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who served as Somalia’s president between 2012 and 2017, won the contest in the capital, Mogadishu, amid a security lockdown imposed by authorities to prevent deadly militant attacks.
“Victory belongs to Somali people, and this is
the beginning of the era of unity, the democracy of Somalia and the beginning of the fight against corruption,” Mohamud said after winning the vote.
The first round of voting was contested by 36 hopefuls, four of whom proceeded to the second round. With no candidate winning at least two-thirds of the 328 ballots, voting went into a third round.
New Mexico wildfires: Crews fighting the second-largest wildfire in New Mexico’s history are trying to take advantage of several days of mild winds to gain control over a fire that had charred more than 450 square miles by Sunday.
Fire officials said the wildfire grew by about 14 square miles since Saturday night but now was at 36% containment, up from 27%.
It was originally forecast that winds would pick up Monday, but fire officials said that likely won’t happen until later in the week.
Shanghai outbreak: Supermarkets, malls and restaurants in Shanghai will be allowed to open in a limited capacity starting Monday, officials said, even while it remained unclear whether residents would be let out from their homes.
Vice Mayor Chen Tong said Sunday that grocery stores, malls, convenience stores and pharmacies will be allowed to reopen while implementing measures that “reduce the flow of people.”
Agricultural markets will be allowed to reopen while ensuring “no-contact” transactions. Restaurants will be allowed to serve takeout.
But Shanghai’s transportation department said Sunday that all subway lines in the city had stopped operating. It was unclear when those services would restart.
Deadlock in UK: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is heading to Northern Ireland on Monday to try to
end a political deadlock that is preventing the formation of a regional administration.
The trip comes amid threats by Johnson’s government to break the Brexit agreement with the European Union that it signed, but now blames for the crisis.
Johnson said there would be “a necessity to act” if the EU didn’t agree to overhaul post-Brexit trade rules.
Voters in Northern Ireland elected a new Assembly this month, in an election that saw Irish nationalist party Sinn Fein win the most seats. It was the first time a party that seeks union with the Republic of Ireland has won an election in the bastion of Protestant unionist power.
The Democratic Unionist Party came second and is refusing to form a government, or even allow the assembly to sit, until Johnson’s government scraps post-Brexit checks on goods entering Northern Ireland from the rest of the U.K.