United States: Shirin Abu Akle, a Palestinian American journalist, was fatally shot during a gunfight allegedly by an Israeli soldier, according to a US senator who dismissed the claim as unsupported by available data. Had given.

According to Senator Chris Van Hollen, a Democrat from Maryland, the reconnaissance of the United Nations and major news outlets showed that the Al Jazeera television journalist was not in the immediate area of ​​fighting with Palestinian terrorists and could not have been caught in the crossfire. , who has called for an independent US investigation into the killing of Abu Akleh in the West Bank in May.

The core of the Israeli Defense Forces' (IDF) "defense" is that a soldier was "returning" from terrorists when Abu Akleh was killed, Van Hollen tweets. However, investigation revealed that no such firing took place at that time. It emphasizes the need for an impartial US investigation into the death of this American journalist.

More than four months after Abu Akleh was shot and killed, Israel finally admitted on Monday that it was "highly probable" that an Israeli soldier killed him as he conducted a military raid on the occupied West Bank city of Jenin. had covered.

According to the report, an Israeli soldier, who was being shot by a group of Palestinian gunmen, shot at Abu Akleh. It was alleged that the soldier mistook him for one of his armed adversaries, using a telescopic sight. According to the army, no one will face charges, as no crime was committed.

However, videos and eyewitnesses surrounding Abu Akleh and the time of his death do not show the shootings. He was also wearing body armor and a helmet with "PRESS" written on it.

According to a UN investigation, Israeli soldiers shot Abu Akleh and other journalists with "several single, seemingly well-aimed bullets".

The official Israeli account of the events was called into question by investigations by the New York Times, CNN, The Washington Post and other media. According to the newspaper, the investigation by the New York Times "denies Israeli claims that, if a soldier had accidentally killed him, it was because he was firing at a Palestinian gunman." It is also revealed that "there was no armed Palestinian with him at the time he was shot."

The Israeli report was criticized as "late and incomplete" by the Committee to Protect Journalists.
The statement said he did not provide any information about the killer of Shirin Abu [Akleh] other than his own testimony that the murder was a mistake.

In response to calls for an independent US investigation from some members of Congress and the family of Abu Akleh, who accused Joe Biden's administration of favoring Israel, the White House pressured Israel to make its findings public. Critics pointed out that the report was published on the public holiday of American Labor Day, when it may have been receiving less attention.

The journalist's niece, Lena Abu Akleh, said the family did not trust the Israeli report.

From the group that apparently killed the identifiable, unarmed journalist, she said, "we cannot expect any accountability or legitimate investigation."

An impartial US investigation is, according to the family, "the minimum the US government should do for one of its citizens." However, it also called for an investigation by the International Criminal Court and referred to the killing of Abu Akleh as a "war crime".

According to critics, the Israeli military has a long history of lying and telling the truth about killing civilians to divert attention. But because she was a US citizen, the Abu Akleh family was able to maintain interest in the case and pressure the Biden White House.

During the four months after the journalist was shot, Israel's account has been changed several times.

Israel's prime minister at the time, Naftali Bennett, said shortly after the fatal shooting that "it appears that armed Palestinians, who were firing indiscriminately at the time, were responsible."

The Israeli embassy in Washington tweeted something that depicts the Palestinian shooters who killed Abu Aqleh before he was assassinated. In a video released by the Israeli government, the journalist appeared to be involved in a crucial battle. According to a video released by Israeli human rights organization B'Salem, government footage was shot a few blocks away from the scene of the shooting of Abu Akleh.

As the backlash grew, Bennett's office denounced "hasty allegations against Israel" and pro-Israel pressure groups attacked media reports that contradicted the official account of the killing.

The Israeli army acknowledged in the weeks that followed that one of its soldiers might have been accountable, but asserted it was unable to conduct a thorough investigation because the Palestinian Authority refused to cooperate and turn over the bullet that killed the journalist.

According to the US State Department, "review of this tragic incident" is welcomed. However, it came under fire for sidestepping calls for the responsible soldier or soldiers to be held accountable and instead advocating for "policies and procedures to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future."

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