Israel Will Not Launch Criminal Investigation into Abu Akleh’s Killing

While conceding that there is a “high possibility” that Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was “accidentally hit” by Israeli army fire, Israel has said it will not be launching a criminal investigation into the killing.

Rabat – While conceding that there is a “high possibility” that Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was “accidentally hit” by Israeli army fire, Israel has said it will not be launching a criminal investigation into the killing.

The IDF released on Monday the results of the Israeli investigation into the killing. Despite acknowledging that the journalist was likely hit by an Israeli bullet, the report says that the “IDF gunfire was fired with the intent of neutralizing the terrorists who shot at IDF soldiers” and doesn’t dismiss the possibility of Palestinain fire.

The report’s conclusion will likely bolster the suspicion of critics, who had already concluded that the IDF would only seek to save face and not actually take responsibility for the death of the prominent American-Palestinian journalist.

Israel had initially claimed that the journalist was killed by Palestinian fire, but it was quickly forced to walk back that statement after activists and NGOs debunked the claim and the video footage released by the Israeli government.

In a background briefing prior to releasing the result of the IDF’s latest report on Akleh’s killing, Israeli army officials told reporters that they had met the soldier responsible, and that “if he did it, he did it by mistake.”

In response, Abu Akleh’s family has released a statement accusing the Israeli government of attempting to “obscure the truth and avoid responsibility.”

“We could never expect any type of accountability or legitimate investigation from the very entity responsible for gunning down an unarmed and clearly identifiable journalist,” tweeted Lina Abu Akleh, the journalist’s niece.

Meanwhile, the family continues to call on the US government and the International Criminal Court to conduct a “thorough, independent, and credible” investigation, saying that Israel is “incapable of holding themselves accountable.”

The prominent Al Jazeera journalist was killed in May during a raid by the Israeli army in Jenin. Being one of the Arab world’s most well known faces in the press, Abu Akleh’s death immediately sent waves in the region, with Al Jazeera and activists demanding an immediate independent investigation.