Palestinian Authority probe says Israeli forces deliberately killed journalist
Israel rejects findings, with the country's defence minister calling them 'a blatant lie'
The Palestinian Authority (PA) on Thursday announced the results of its investigation into the shooting death of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, saying it shows she was deliberately killed by Israeli forces as she tried to flee.
The conclusion echoed the results of a preliminary investigation announced nearly two weeks ago and were widely expected. Israel rejected the findings, with Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz calling them "a blatant lie."
Abu Akleh, a veteran Palestinian-American reporter for Al Jazeera's Arabic service, was shot in the head on May 11 during an Israeli military raid in the city of Jenin in the occupied West Bank.
Witnesses and Palestinian officials have said she was hit by Israeli fire. Israel says she was shot during a battle between Israeli soldiers and Palestinian militants. It says that only a ballistic analysis of the bullet — which is held by the Palestinian Authority — and the soldiers' guns can determine who fired the fatal shot.
No militants present, attorney general says
Announcing the results of his probe at a news conference in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Palestinian Attorney General Akram Al Khateeb said he had determined there were no militants in the immediate area where Abu Akleh was located.
"The only shooting was by the occupation forces, with the aim of killing," he said.
Abu Akleh was in a group of journalists wearing helmets and protective vests marked "press." Al Khateeb said the army saw the journalists and knew they were journalists.
He accused Israel of shooting her "directly and deliberately" as she tried to escape. He also repeated the Palestinian position that the bullet will not be handed over to the Israelis for study. He said they decided not even to show images of the bullet "to deprive [Israel] of a new lie."
Al Khateeb said his investigation was based on interviews with witnesses, an inspection of the scene and a forensic medical report.
Israel says it must test bullet
In a speech later Thursday, Israeli army chief Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi said it was impossible to know who fired the bullet and once again called on the Palestinians to co-operate to "get to the bottom" of what happened.
"But there is one thing that can be determined with certainty," Kochavi said. "No soldier fired intentionally at a journalist. We investigated that. We checked it. That is the conclusion. There is no other."
Israel denies targeting journalists and has offered two possible scenarios, saying Abu Akleh was either shot by Palestinian militants who were firing recklessly at an Israeli army convoy or that she was hit by Israeli gunfire aimed at a nearby militant.
The military has identified the rifle that may have been used in that scenario, but says it needs to test the bullet to make any final determination.
An Associated Press reconstruction of events has lent support to eyewitnesses who say she was shot by Israeli troops. But the reconstruction said it was impossible to reach a conclusive finding without further forensic analysis.
Palestinian witnesses say there were no militants or clashes anywhere near Abu Akleh. The only known militants in the area were on the other side of the convoy, some 300 metres from her position. They did not have a direct line of sight, unlike the convoy itself, which was some 200 metres away on a long straight road.
Israel has publicly called for a joint investigation with the PA, with U.S. participation, and has asked the PA to hand over the bullet for testing. But the U.S. State Department said Wednesday that it had received no formal request for assistance from either side two weeks after her death.
The PA has refused to hand over the bullet to Israel or co-operate with it in any way, saying Israel cannot be trusted to investigate its own conduct. Rights groups say Israel has a poor record of investigating when security forces shoot Palestinians, with cases often languishing for months or years before being quietly closed.
Results to be shared outside region
The PA administers parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Hussein Al Sheikh, a top Palestinian official, said Thursday's report would be shared with the U.S. administration. Copies will also be delivered to her family and to Al Jazeera, he said.
The Palestinians say they will share their results with international parties, including the International Criminal Court, which launched an investigation into possible Israeli war crimes last year. Israel has rejected that probe as being biased against it and is not co-operating with it.
The severe distrust means the Israeli and Palestinian investigations into Abu Akleh's death are unfolding separately, with neither likely to accept any conclusions reached by the other.
Each side is in sole possession of potentially crucial evidence. Ballistic analysis could match the bullet to a specific firearm based on a microscopic signature, but only if investigators have access to both.
Lt.-Col. Amnon Shefler, an Israeli military spokesperson, told the Associated Press the military has additional footage from that day, but declined to say what it shows or when it would be released, citing the ongoing investigation.