"The White House and the US State Department were not involved in the decision to consider opening an investigation against the Israeli soldiers who apparently caused the accidental death of journalist Shirin Abu Aqla, and were not even aware of this decision," a political source told Israel Hayom. According to the source, this is an independent initiative of the US Department of Justice, through the FBI, so the initiative did not come from the political ranks in the US, but the meaning of the investigation is still not entirely clear.
So far, no official request has been received from the US on this issue, but through diplomatic channels, an unofficial warning was sent to Israel regarding the possibility of opening an investigation. Abu Aqla, a Palestinian journalist who also held American citizenship and worked for the Al-Jazeera network, was killed on May 11 of this year She was very popular in the Palestinian Authority and among Al Jazeera viewers in the Arab world, and was considered the "face of the network" in the coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Shirin Abu-Akala, photo: AFP
Abu Aqla was hit by a bullet during an activity of the Dovdevan unit, which entered the Jenin refugee camp in order to arrest wanted persons in the midst of a wave of terror.
The activity took place in a very dense urban area, and the IDF noted that during it "extensive and indiscriminate shooting was fired by Palestinian armed men at IDF soldiers, including at the time and space where the journalist was killed, and all this alongside the throwing of explosive charges that hit the military vehicles and near the soldiers." .
Towards the end of the activity, when the forces were on their way out of the refugee camp, a report was received about the attack on Abu Aqla.
The unusual American decision to consider opening a criminal investigation into the matter, apparently indicates a lack of trust in the Israeli investigation, at least at the levels of the Ministry of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
This is despite the fact that in the investigation of Abu Aqla's death an American representative is involved and Israel has made great efforts to act transparently, among other things in light of the sensitivity that arose from her being an American citizen.
The US does not have the ability to prosecute the fighters without Israeli cooperation - it probably won't be given in this case - but the very opening of an investigation could lead to a diplomatic incident between the countries.
About two months ago, the IDF announced that the final investigation of the incident shows that there is a higher probability that the journalist was killed by the fire of an IDF soldier, although there is still a chance that she was killed by Palestinian armed fire.
The Palestinian Authority said in response that the investigation is "a new Israeli attempt to escape responsibility for the killing of Abu Aqla."
The tragic incident was considered extremely beneficial for the Palestinian Authority's propaganda machine, which made every effort to leverage and promote it in the international arena.
Against this background, and against the background of the fact that Abu-Aqla has family members living in the US, in Israel, they suspect that the decision of the American Ministry of Justice was influenced by Palestinian pressure, whether exerted by the family members or by the PA.
"The decision of the US Department of Justice to investigate the unfortunate death of Shirin Abu Aqla is a grave mistake," said Defense Minister Benny Gantz.
"The IDF conducted an independent and professional investigation, which was presented to the Americans who shared its details.
I made it clear to the American representatives that we stand behind the IDF soldiers, that we will not cooperate with any external investigation, and we will not allow interference in Israel's internal affairs."
So far, no official request has been received from the US on this issue, but through diplomatic channels, an unofficial warning was sent to Israel regarding the possibility of opening an investigation. Abu Aqla, a Palestinian journalist who also held American citizenship and worked for the Al-Jazeera network, was killed on May 11 of this year She was very popular in the Palestinian Authority and among Al Jazeera viewers in the Arab world, and was considered the "face of the network" in the coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Abu Aqla was hit by a bullet during an activity of the Dovdevan unit, which entered the Jenin refugee camp in order to arrest wanted persons in the midst of a wave of terror.
The activity took place in a very dense urban area, and the IDF noted that during it "extensive and indiscriminate shooting was fired by Palestinian armed men at IDF soldiers, including at the time and space where the journalist was killed, and all this alongside the throwing of explosive charges that hit the military vehicles and near the soldiers." .
Towards the end of the activity, when the forces were on their way out of the refugee camp, a report was received about the attack on Abu Aqla.
Lack of trust in the Israeli investigation
The unusual American decision to consider opening a criminal investigation into the matter, apparently indicates a lack of trust in the Israeli investigation, at least at the levels of the Ministry of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
This is despite the fact that in the investigation of Abu Aqla's death an American representative is involved and Israel has made great efforts to act transparently, among other things in light of the sensitivity that arose from her being an American citizen.
The US does not have the ability to prosecute the fighters without Israeli cooperation - it probably won't be given in this case - but the very opening of an investigation could lead to a diplomatic incident between the countries.
About two months ago, the IDF announced that the final investigation of the incident shows that there is a higher probability that the journalist was killed by the fire of an IDF soldier, although there is still a chance that she was killed by Palestinian armed fire.
The Palestinian Authority said in response that the investigation is "a new Israeli attempt to escape responsibility for the killing of Abu Aqla."
"A serious mistake".
Gantz, photo: Gil Kramer
The tragic incident was considered extremely beneficial for the Palestinian Authority's propaganda machine, which made every effort to leverage and promote it in the international arena.
Against this background, and against the background of the fact that Abu-Aqla has family members living in the US, in Israel, they suspect that the decision of the American Ministry of Justice was influenced by Palestinian pressure, whether exerted by the family members or by the PA.
"The decision of the US Department of Justice to investigate the unfortunate death of Shirin Abu Aqla is a grave mistake," said Defense Minister Benny Gantz.
"The IDF conducted an independent and professional investigation, which was presented to the Americans who shared its details.
I made it clear to the American representatives that we stand behind the IDF soldiers, that we will not cooperate with any external investigation, and we will not allow interference in Israel's internal affairs."
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