New Video Shows No Fighting Before Al-Jazeera Journalist’s Killing
TEHRAN (FNA)- A new video that begins moments before Al-Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was killed emerged showing relative calm and quiet, contrary to claims by Israeli officials that fighting was taking place in the area.
Abu Akleh, 51, was killed by an Israeli soldier on May 11, according to colleagues and witnesses who were present at the scene, while covering a military raid by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, Al-Jazeera reported.
The clip, which was verified by Al-Jazeera, shows initial quiet with no sounds of fighting, corroborating witness reports that there were no clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinian fighters at the time of the shooting, as the Israelis have suggested.
Some people are seen to be talking and laughing in the foreground, with people in the background, including Abu Akleh and some of her colleagues wearing blue press flak jackets, also visible.
Abu Akleh and the other journalists are walking in the direction of where Israeli forces were located, before gunfire shots start ringing out.
Once the shooting starts, people in the foreground start running away from where the Israeli forces were positioned. Abu Akleh can be seen lying in the street after being shot.
A Palestinian-US citizen, Abu Akleh’s killing by Israeli forces has led to global outrage and widespread calls for an independent investigation.
On Thursday, an Israeli military official said the Israeli Army had potentially identified the rifle from which Abu Akleh may have been shot, but added that they could not be sure unless Palestinian authorities handed over the bullet.
The Palestinians have stated they were conducting their own investigation and have refused to turn over the bullet to the Israelis citing a lack of trust based on past experiences.
Israeli authorities initially claimed Palestinian fighters may had been responsible for Abu Akleh’s death, circulating video of Palestinian men shooting down an alleyway.
However, researchers from the prominent Israeli human rights group B’Tselem found the spot where the clip was filmed: 300 metres (985 feet) away and with no line of sight to the location where Abu Akleh was shot. Al-Jazeera’s Sanad news verification and monitoring unit also conducted an investigation and reached a similar conclusion.
The open-source research group Bellingcat has also supported accounts of Palestinian witnesses present at the scene of the killing, based on their own audio and video analysis.
Separately on Thursday, Israeli media reported that the Israeli Army was not planning to investigate Abu Akleh’s death.
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that Israel’s Military Police Criminal Investigation Division believes an investigation that treats Israeli soldiers as suspects will lead to opposition within Israeli society.
Shortly after, dozens of United States legislators signed a letter demanding the FBI investigate Abu Akleh’s killing.
Abu Akleh’s family has also urged the US government and international community to step in and ensure an independent probe.
57 US lawmakers seek FBI probe into Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh’s death
Shireen Abu Akleh, who is also a US citizen, regularly reported on-camera from across the Palestinian territories. AP
The 57 House members, largely left-leaning Democrats and led by Representative Andre Carson, noted that Shireen Abu Akleh held US citizenship and pointed to divergent accounts on how she died on May 11.
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"Given the tenuous situation in the region and the conflicting reports surrounding the death of Ms. Abu Akleh, we request the State Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation launch an investigation into Ms. Abu Akleh's death," they wrote in a letter.
"As an American, Ms. Abu Akleh was entitled to the full protection afforded to US citizens living abroad," they wrote to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and FBI Director Christopher Wray.
Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh is seen on the ground after being shot in the face in Jenin on May 11. AFP
Al Jazeera and Palestinians say Israeli forces killed Abu Akleh, a prominent journalist, as she covered an Israeli army raid in Jenin, in the north of the occupied West Bank.
Israel says she may have been killed by Palestinian gunfire or a stray shot from an Israeli soldier.
The Israeli ambassador to Washington, Michael Herzog, said he was "disheartened" by the letter and that Israel had sought a joint investigation with the Palestinian Authority that would include a US observer role.
"Our call was flatly rejected by the PA, which is cynically using Ms. Abu Akleh's death to instigate an anti-Israel propaganda campaign," he said.
Children take part in a candlelight vigil to condemn the killing of veteran journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in Gaza. AFP
He called instead for Congress to press the Palestinian side on an investigation, adding that Israeli troops "would never intentionally target members of the press."
The State Department has said that it believes Israel can conduct a credible investigation but Blinken has also criticised the Israeli police for its use of force during Abu Akleh's funeral.
Agence France-Presse
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