Israel won’t hold prison inquiry into killing of journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh | Israel

Israel won't launch a prison investigation into the killing of the US-Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh, which Palestinian officials and witnesses have blamed on Israeli troopers.

In a press release launched on Thursday, the Israel Defense Forces claimed that as a result of Abu Aqleh was killed in an “energetic combat scenario”, an instantaneous prison investigation wouldn't be launched, though an “operational inquiry” would continue.

In response to a report within the Haaretz newspaper, the Israeli army police branch has accepted the assurances of Israeli troops that they weren't conscious she was in a village adjacent to the Jenin refugee camp when she was killed on 11 May.

The Biden administration and the UN security council have called for a clear investigation.

Abu Aqleh was a family name throughout the Arab world, known for documenting the hardship of Palestinian life underneath Israeli rule for Al Jazeera. Her killing acquired widespread international protection and prompted criticism from the White House.

The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, promised her household that Washington would demand that her demise be correctly investigated.

Abu Aqleh was killed throughout an arrest raid by an Israeli commando unit on Palestinian militants.

According to Haaretz, the pinnacle of the Commando Brigade, Col Meni Liberty, recognized six events in the course of the raid when Israeli troopers opened hearth, allegedly at armed Palestinians who had been close to Abu Aqleh and other journalists.

The Israeli army had previously released an account that said it couldn't unequivocally determine the source of the bullet that killed Abu Aqleh. That account speculated that the bullet may have been fired by either a Palestinian militant or an Israeli soldier using a “telescopic scope” at 200 metres.

Palestinian officers have refused to give the recovered bullet to Israeli authorities to analyse but said it welcomed international investigations.

The decision by the Israeli military advocate common, Maj Gen Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, to not order an investigation by the army police prison investigation division marks a departure from nearly all of current incidents involving IDF shootings of civilians in the occupied West Bank, which have been followed by investigations.

At her funeral on Friday police beat mourners carrying her casket, prompting extra criticism of Israeli authorities.

Last week the UN excessive commissioner for human rights, Michelle Bachelet, complained about a lack of Israeli accountability for deaths in the occupied territories.

Commenting on Abu Aqleh’s killing and the subsequent violence at her funeral, Bachelet stated: “As I've referred to as for a lot of instances before, there must be appropriate investigations into the actions of Israeli security forces.

“Anyone found accountable needs to be held to account with penal and disciplinary sanctions commensurate to the gravity of the violation. This culture of impunity must finish now.”

The Israeli NGO Yesh Din criticised the choice not to investigate, saying that “the army legislation enforcement mechanisms not even trouble to give the appearance of investigating”.

More than 100 artists, together with Hollywood stars, acclaimed authors and distinguished musicians, have in the meantime signed a joint letter condemning Abu Aqleh’s killing.

Steve Coogan, Kathryn Hahn, Mark Ruffalo, Susan Sarandon and Tilda Swinton had been among the signatories to a letter published by Artists for Palestine UK that called for “full accountability for the perpetrators of this crime and everybody involved in authorising it”.

The Israel Defence Forces launched an announcement on Thursday claiming that “dozens of Palestinian gunmen fired recklessly and indiscriminately whereas IDF troopers have been conducting counter-terrorism actions in the Jenin camp” on the day that Abu Aqleh died.

“An change of fire occurred between Palestinian gunmen and the soldiers. Towards the end of the activity, the journalist Shireen Abu [Aqleh], who was current on the battle zone throughout the trade of fire, was hit.

“Due to the nature of the lively fight scenario, a right away [military criminal] investigation was not launched. A choice regarding the necessity of an … investigation will be decided by the navy advocacy, in accordance with the findings of the still-ongoing operational inquiry, as is commonplace in such circumstances.”

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The police branch choice came a day after Israeli authorities said they've given the go-ahead for flag-waving Jewish nationalists to march by way of the center of the main Palestinian thoroughfare in Jerusalem’s Old City later this month, in a choice that threatens to re-ignite violence in the holy metropolis.

The office of the public security minister, Omer Barlev, stated the march would take place on 29 Might alongside its “customary route” via Damascus Gate, which is an Arab neighbourhood.

The Old City, positioned in East Jerusalem, has experienced weeks of violent confrontations between Israeli police and Palestinian demonstrators, and the march threatens to set off new unrest.