Joint Investigation Says Abu Akleh’s Killing ‘Deliberate’

Facts

• A joint investigation by Forensic Architecture, a London-based multidisciplinary research group, and Al-Haq, a Palestinian rights group, has refuted Israel’s account that the killing of veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was accidental.
• The analysis reportedly includes a detailed digital reconstruction of the incident based on previously unseen footage recorded by Al Jazeera staff at the scene and witness testimony, open-source video, and a drone survey of the area.
• The report's reconstruction of events concluded that there were neither armed gunmen nor shots fired in the minutes leading up to Abu Akleh’s killing, directly contradicting the Israeli military's assertion of accidental death.
• Based on a separate probe, the Israeli military claimed earlier this month that there was a "high probability" that an Israeli gunman accidentally shot Abu Akleh while shooting at Palestinian militants and that no legal action would be taken.
• The joint investigation's findings come on the same day that Abu Akleh’s family, supported by other journalist organizations, formally submitted an official complaint to the International Criminal Court (ICC), with the hope of pressuring Israel.
• Abu Akleh was shot in the head while covering a raid in the West Bank city of Jenin on May 11, as violence in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza spiked earlier this year.

Sources: Al Jazeera, Intercept, Times of Israel.

Narratives

• Pro-Palestine, as provided by Al Jazeera. Israel's denial that one of its soldiers intentionally killed Abu Akleh is becoming farcical as new evidence continues to prove otherwise. The Israeli sniper could clearly see that Abu Akleh was a journalist and fired at her and those who tried to help her for two minutes. Israel must be held accountable for this terrible crime.
• Pro-Israel, as provided by Times of Israel. Though this recent investigation may seem like a smoking gun, Al Jazeera hasn't made public the unseen footage it gave to Forensic Architecture and Al-Haq. Accordingly, its findings are hearsay until they can be verified by independent observers. In addition, Al-Haq is associated with the terrorist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which cannot be trusted considering its criminal history. There is still no reason to believe that Abu Akleh's killing was deliberate.