Israel says Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh 'probably' got shot by its forces unintentionally

Israeli military said on Monday (September 5) that Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was likely to have been unintentionally shot by an Israeli soldiers but was not deliberately targeted. Abu Akleh was a US-Palestinian citizen who was shot dead on May 11 as she covered an Israeli military operation in the volatile town of Jenin in occupied West Bank.

The Israeli military says that troops conducting operations in Jenin had come under heavy fire from all sides and had fired back, including towards the area where Abu Akleh was standing about 200 metres from their position, but that they had not been able to identify her as a journalist.

It said, "There is a high possibility that Ms. Abu Akleh was accidentally hit by IDF gunfire that was fired toward suspects identified as armed Palestinian gunmen." It said it was also possible that she was hit by Palestinian gunmen.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

Abu Akleh was one of the most recognisable faces reporting on Israel-Palestine conflict. Her death had triggered outrage across the world. It was more pronounced especially after police beat mourners at her funeral in Jerusalem.

There are other witness accounts that dispute that Israeli position was under fire from the area where Abu Akleh was standing.

"All evidence, facts and investigations that have been conducted proved that Israel was the perpetrator and that it had killed Shireen and it should bear responsibility for its crime," said Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

The Israeli investigation, which included interviews with IDF soldiers, analysis of the scene as well as audio and video recordings, found it was "not possible to unequivocally determine the source of the gunfire" which killed Abu Akleh.

But Israel has repeatedly denied she was knowingly targeted by its forces and said the investigation showed that soldiers had acted according to their rules of engagement.

"We can say for 100% sure that no IDF soldier intentionally directed fire on a reporter or non-involved person on the ground," a senior military official who briefed journalists on the findings of the investigations said.

(With inputs from agencies)