The Palestinian authorities revealed the preliminary results of the autopsy process for the Qatari “Al-Jazeera” journalist, Sherine Abu Aqleh, hours following she was killed in the West Bank while covering clashes in Jenin, amid conflicting accounts as to who bears responsibility for her death.
The Palestinian News Agency “Wafa” quoted the director of the Justice Institute at An-Najah National University, Rayan Al-Ali, as saying that the bullet that hit Abu Aqila “was a direct lethal.”
He added, during a press conference following the completion of the first stage of the autopsy, that “the bullet caused extensive laceration to the brain and skull, and the weapon used was of a very fast type, and a deformed projectile was seized, which is currently being studied.”
On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said that “armed Palestinians” were “probably” responsible for the killing of Abu Aqila.
“According to the information we have gathered, it appears most likely that armed Palestinians who were shooting indiscriminately at the time are responsible for the unfortunate death of the journalist” who was covering a military operation in the Jenin refugee camp, Bennett added in a statement.
And the Israeli Foreign Minister, Yair Lapid, had said, in a tweet, that “we offered the Palestinians a joint investigation” into the death of Abu Akleh.
The killing of Abu Aqleh sparked international and Arab reactions, as the US ambassador to Israel, Tom Nides, demanded a comprehensive investigation into the circumstances of her killing and the injury of another journalist.
And the US ambassador to Israel, Tom Nides, tweeted, “It is very sad that we learned of the death of the American and Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh.”
Nides called for a “comprehensive investigation into the circumstances of the killing of Sherine Abu Aqleh and the injury of another journalist.”
In turn, the British ambassador to Israel, Neil Wigan, said in a post on Twitter: “I am deeply saddened by the tragic death of the Al Jazeera correspondent in Jenin this morning.”
“Journalists must be allowed to work safely and freely,” Wigan noted. He called for “a prompt, thorough and transparent investigation” into the incident.
‘heinous crime’
Al Jazeera Media Network condemned what it described as a “heinous crime… and a tragic murder”, blaming “the Israeli government and the occupation forces for the killing of Abu Aqila.”
“The Israeli occupation forces, in cold blood, assassinated our correspondent in Palestine, Shireen Abu Aqleh, with live bullets, who directly targeted her,” she said in a statement.
She added that Abu Aqleh was “doing her journalistic work covering the Israeli army’s storming of Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank, and she was wearing a press jacket that clearly indicated her identity.”
In turn, the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement: “We condemn in the strongest terms the assassination of the media occupation forces, Sherine Abu Aqleh.”
The US embassy in Qatar expressed its regret and announced that it “sends its condolences for the death of Al-Jazeera correspondent and US citizen Shireen Abu Akleh.” “The United States supports the rights of journalists as they do their work freely and safely,” she said. “We encourage an investigation into the circumstances of the death and also the injury of another reporter today.” The Palestinian Authority also condemned what it described as a “shocking and heinous crime”, holding “the Israeli government fully responsible.”
The Palestinian Prime Minister, Muhammad Shtayyeh, said in a Facebook post, “It is a black day for the press in the world and for every free person, with the loss of Shireen Abu Aqleh, who, with her high professionalism, formed the memory of an entire generation and contributed to conveying the Palestinian narrative to the world with all sincerity, and was at the heart of the event on the over a period of 25 years.
He added: “On my own behalf and on behalf of the Council of Ministers, I offer my deepest condolences, and sincere condolences, from her family and the press family, on this great loss.”
And he continued in a post on Twitter: “Sherine Abu Aqleh contributed to creating the memory of an entire generation and telling the Palestinian story to the world.”
