Palestinians furious at tepid US findings on journalist's killing

The family of slain Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, the Palestinian public and leadership, and human rights organizations reacted angrily to the claim by the United States and Israel that the ballistic test of the bullet that killed Abu Akleh did not provide conclusive evidence that Israeli soldiers were behind the act. However, a US statement said that the American-Palestinian was “likely” killed by the Israelis. Without having interviewed any Israeli soldiers, the US statement exonerated Israelis of the premeditated act by saying that if the fatal bullet had come from the Israeli side, then it was "unintentional."

The United States pressured the Palestinian government before the visit of US President Joe Biden to allow them to conduct tests of the bullet along with Israelis, with the promise that Americans would be in the room and the bullet would be returned. It was returned without any damage, although the Americans claim that the bullet itself was damaged and it did not provide “conclusive” proof that it had come from Israel. Palestinian officials have said that the bullet was not damaged.

Abu Akleh’s family issued a long statement calling the US report “incredulous” and noting that the “focus on the bullet has always been misplaced and was an attempt by the Israeli side to spin the narrative in its favor." The statement questioned the reason for the anonymity of the US investigator: “We were expecting that the American investigation would focus on finding the responsible party and hold them responsible not parsing over barely relevant facts."

A statement by the Palestinian Foreign Ministry slammed the attempts at questioning Israel’s intentions. “No amount of vagueness or politicization can exonerate the killers, whitewash the crime or hide the truth.” The state of Palestine, the statement concluded, will “continue undeterred” with its efforts at the international level, including the International Criminal Court.