IDF May Have Found Rifle That Killed Abu Akleh

By Hamodia Staff

Palestinian gunmen fire on Israeli forces during an IDF raid in Jenin, May 13. (Nasser Ishtayeh/Flash90/File)

YERUSHALAYIM — The Israeli military has identified a soldier’s rifle that may have killed Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, but said it cannot be certain unless the Palestinians turn over the bullet for analysis, a military official said Thursday.

The announcement marked a small sign of progress in the investigation into the killing of Abu Akleh, who was shot on May 11 while covering an Israeli military raid in Jenin.

Palestinian officials, along with fellow journalists who were with Abu Akleh, have said Israeli troops stationed nearby killed her. The Israeli army says she was shot during a battle between troops and Palestinian gunmen, and it cannot be determined who fired the fatal bullet without a proper analysis.

Israel has called for a joint investigation with the Palestinians. But the Palestinians, who have the bullet, have refused, saying they don’t trust Israel. They say they are conducting their own investigation and they are ready to cooperate with any country except Israel.

The military official stressed that while the source of the shot is still unclear, “we have narrowed down the IDF weapon that might be involved in the fire exchange near Shireen.”

He renewed the call for the Palestinians to release the bullet. If they do so, he said, Israel will “hopefully be able to compare the bullet to that barrel and check if there is a match.” He spoke on condition of anonymity under military briefing guidelines.

The military last week released the results of a preliminary investigation that offered two possible causes of death. It said that in one scenario, she may have been hit by Palestinian gunfire during a fierce shootout with Israeli troops.

In the second scenario, it said she might have been hit by an Israeli soldier who shot through a “designated firing hole” in a military vehicle at a Palestinian gunman who was shooting at the vehicle. It said it could not determine the source of fire without analyzing the bullet.

The IDF said it will not be opening a criminal investigation into the killing.

 “In view of the nature of the operational activity, which included intense fighting and extensive exchanges of fire, it was decided that there was no need to open a Military Police investigation at this stage,” read a statement provided to The Jerusalem Post.

With reporting by AP

To Read The Full Story

Are you already a subscriber?
Click to log in!