Shirin Abu Akle, Al Jazeera reporter, killed in Israeli strike in West Bank

Veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shirin Abu Akleh, one of the most prominent satellite channel reporters, was shot dead on Wednesday while covering an Israeli military offensive in the occupied West Bank. The station and two accompanying reporters blamed Israeli forces.

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz promised a transparent investigation and said he was in contact with US and Palestinian officials. The Israeli military initially suggested that Abu Akle may have been killed by Palestinian street fire, but Gantz was more cautious on Wednesday night. “We’re trying to find out what happened,” he said. “I have no final conclusions.”

He said Israel asked Palestinian medical staff, who performed the earlier dissection, to hand over the fatal bullet for further examination. Ryan al-Ali, director of the Palestinian Institute of Forensic Medicine, said on Wednesday that the bullet was deformed and that he was still unable to determine who fired it.

Abu Akleh’s death could spark a new study of Israel’s military justice system, which is seen as part of a war crimes investigation by the International Criminal Court. It also threatened further tensions, often strained relations between the military and the international media.

Abu Aklehi, 51, was a well-respected and well-known figure in the Middle East, known for his coverage of the harsh realities of Israel’s 55-year-old Israeli military occupation of Palestinians in Al Jazeera Arab. He was widely recognized on the West Coast and was also an American citizen.

His death was heard throughout the region. Arab governments condemned the murder.

There was also pain on the West Coast. In Ramallah, the body of Abu Akleh, a member of the Palestinian Authority government, was taken downtown, wearing a Palestinian flag and a wreath. Hundreds of people chanted, “With our souls, with our blood, we will deliver you, Shirin.”

On Thursday, the procession would take the body to be buried in Jerusalem, where Abu Akle was born.

Dozens of people gathered in East Jerusalem at the family home in his honor. Lina Abu Akleh, his niece, called him “my best friend, my second mother, my partner”.

“I never thought there would be a day when there would be news about him and he wouldn’t be the only one covering the news,” he said.

At one point, a group of Israeli policemen entered the house, where they were immediately greeted with shouts of “murderers” and “occupiers” and shouts of “get out”. It was not immediately clear why the police came and the officers quickly left.

On Wednesday night, Palestinians gathered at the family’s home, some carrying Palestinian flags and banners with a photo of the journalist. As the group headed towards the main road, Israeli police tried to stop them. A fight followed. Five Palestinians were injured and about half were arrested.

Abu Akleq was shot in the head outside the Jenin refugee camp on the northwest coast, known as a militant stronghold. Israel has carried out near-daily attacks on Jenin in recent weeks, following a series of deadly attacks inside Israel carried out by militants in the area.

Gantz said Israeli forces attacked several addresses with indiscriminate fire from Palestinian militants. The military released a body camera video showing forces in the city as heavy fire can be heard in the background.

The sentiment described the situation in a chaotic way. He said all soldiers at the scene had been interrogated, but the investigation could only move forward with the cooperation of a Palestinian forensic team.

“I’m very sorry about what happened,” Gandz told reporters. “At the moment we do not know the exact cause of Shirin’s death. “We are very determined to conduct a full-scale investigation and look forward to working with the Palestinians on this issue.”

Al Jazeera accused Israel of “deliberately targeting and killing our colleague”. Palestinian journalists who were with Abu Akle at the time said they reported his presence to Israeli soldiers and saw no militants in the area.

Abu Akleh’s producer, Palestinian journalist Ali Samoud, was constantly rushed to hospital after being shot in the back. He said any accusation that militants had shot at them was a “complete lie”.

Relations between Israeli forces and foreign media, especially Palestinian journalists, are strained.

During last year’s war between Israeli militants and Gaza’s rulers, an Israeli airstrike destroyed a building in Gaza that housed the offices of the Associated Press and Al Jazeera. Residents were warned about the evacuation and no one was injured as a result of the attack. Israel said Hamas used the building as a command center but did not provide any evidence.

The outcome of the Israeli military investigation will be closely monitored. The International Criminal Court (ICC) has launched an investigation into possible war crimes in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Israel does not recognize the court’s jurisdiction and called the investigation unfair and anti-Semitic. One of his main arguments against the investigation was that his military justice could investigate himself.

Findings from the investigation into Abu Akleh’s death could lead to a new study. A senior Palestinian official, Hussein al-Sheikh, said Palestinians would provide information about the case to the court.

US Ambassador to New York Linda Thomas-Greenfield called Abu Akle’s death “truly horrific” and called for a transparent investigation. He said protecting American citizens and journalists was “our top priority.”

Thomas Greenfield said Abud Akleh gave an “extraordinary interview” on the West Coast last November. “I left with a special respect for him,” he said.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs called for an “independent and transparent investigation into his murder”. Impunity must end.”

The White House also demanded a full investigation. “It is crucial to investigate attacks against independent media and bring those responsible to justice,” said deputy spokeswoman Carine Jean-Pierre.

Palestinian UN Ambassador Riyad Mansour, along with representatives from the Arab League and the UN Arab Group, called for an independent international investigation.

Al Jazeera, which has long had tense relations with Israel, went off the air to announce the death of Abu Aklehi on Wednesday morning.

In a statement posted on his channel, he called on the international community to “condemn and hold the Israeli occupation forces accountable for the deliberate and deliberate murder of our colleague.”

He posted a video showing Abu Akle lying motionless beside a road wall as another journalist leans over and a man yells at an ambulance. Gunshots are heard in the background. Both reporters wore blue jackets with the word “PRESS” clearly marked on them. The origin of the shot is not seen in the video.

The Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the occupied West Bank and cooperates with Israel on security issues, condemned what it calls a “shocking crime” committed by Israeli forces.

Qatar, the Arab League and Jordan condemned the shooting, while a group of journalists and activists marched in the Jordanian capital Amman in solidarity with Al Jazeera offices.

Israelis have long been critical of Al Jazeera’s coverage, but the government generally allows its journalists to operate freely.

Several Palestinian reporters were wounded by rubber bullets or tear gas while covering demonstrations in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Israeli forces shot dead two Palestinian journalists while filming violent protests on the Gaza border in 2018.

In November of that year, AP operator Rashid Rashid was covering a protest near the Gaza border when he was shot in the left ankle, presumably by Israeli gunfire.

The army never admitted to shooting.

The Foreign Press Association, which represents about 400 journalists working in international media, said it was “shocked and deeply shocked” by the murder and hoped he was “responsible for this horrible death”.