Shireen Abu Akleh and the quest for justice
By Joseph Tulloch and Roberto Cetera
Three years ago, the Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh – known throughout the Arab world for her reporting from the West Bank – was shot in the back of the head during an Israeli raid on the Jenin refugee camp.
To this day, nobody has been held responsible for her killing.
Initially, Israel denied any involvement in her death, claiming that Abu Akleh had been accidentally shot by Palestinian militants. After four months, the IDF eventually admitted that one of its own soldiers was almost certainly responsible, but denied that the journalist had been deliberately targeted.
The details of Israel’s investigation into the killing have never been made public, and a US investigation was inconclusive, due, officials said, to a lack of collaboration from Israeli authorities.
A journalist with Al Jazeera, and a Catholic, Abu Akleh was one of the few female Palestinian journalists reporting from the West Bank. She “entered the hearts of the Palestinian people”, her brother, Anton, told Vatican Media. “She was the voice of Palestine, the voice of oppressed people of the Holy Land.”
The quest for justice
In an interview with Roberto Cetera, conducted on the three-year anniversary of his sister’s death – which fell on May 11th – Anton Abu Akleh stressed that her family "will not accept any investigation from the [Israeli] side”.
At the time she was killed, Abu Akleh was wearing a blue bulletproof vest clearly marked with the word ‘Press’. The Israeli army, Anton said, “targeted” his sister: “they are the ones who targeted Shireen, they are the ones who killed her.”
“After three years, they haven’t provided us with any facts or investigation,” Abu Akleh stressed.
His sister, Palestinian by birth, was a naturalised US citizen, and Abu Akleh pointed to an ongoing investigation from the US Department of Justice, which he hopes will “identify those responsible and hold them accountable, bring them to justice.”
“But it’s three years now,” he stressed. “It’s taking too long.”
200 journalists dead
Abu Akleh pointed to a new released by the independent media outlet Zeteo, which alleges that Israeli soldiers have been using photos of his sister’s face as target practice.
He also condemned the “climate of impunity” and “absence of accountability” within the Israeli military, which, he said, mean that his sister’s death has not remained an isolated case.
According to Reporters Without Borders, nearly 200 journalists have been killed in Gaza since the outbreak of the war there in 2023 – a state of affairs that the organisation as a “massacre”.
On Monday, at his first public audience since his election to the papacy, 杏MAP导航 Leo XIV saluted the “courage” of journalists such as these.
He wanted, he said, to “reiterate the Church’s solidarity” with reporters who are killed or imprisoned for their work.
They “defend dignity, justice and the right of people to be informed”, 杏MAP导航 Leo said, “because only informed individuals can make free choices”.
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