(Washington) The family of American-Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, killed last May, urged Antony Blinken on Tuesday to hold Israel accountable, but the head of American diplomacy remained deaf to calls for an independent investigation.
Updated yesterday at 9:17 p.m.
Relatives of the journalist, who was killed while covering an Israeli military operation in the occupied West Bank, traveled to Washington at Mr Blinken’s invitation after trying unsuccessfully to meet President Joe Biden during his recent visit to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
“We continue to demand accountability and demand justice for Shireen,” the journalist’s niece, Lina Abu Akleh, told AFP when she left the State Department after a nearly hour-long interview with Ms. Blinken.
“If no one is held responsible for Shireen’s murder, it’s a kind of green light given to other governments to kill American citizens,” added the 27-year-old young woman, notably accompanied by the journalist’s brother. , Tony Abu Akleh.
Lina Abu Akleh said the US Secretary of State understood the family’s concerns and promised “to establish a better channel of communication”.
But he “has made no commitment” on the family’s calls for an independent US investigation into the circumstances of the journalist’s death, she added.
Star of the pan-Arab channel Al Jazeera, Shireen Abu Akleh was equipped with a bulletproof vest marked “press” and a reporting helmet when she was shot in the head on May 11 in Jenin. No Palestinian fighter was near the reporter, and Israeli soldiers were stationed about 200 meters away.
On July 4, the United States concluded in a statement that she was “likely” killed by fire from an Israeli position, without having reason to believe that her death was intentional. The family had criticized this press release.
“In-depth” investigation
After the meeting with relatives, Antony Blinken tweeted that Shireen Abu Akleh’s “brave journalism” had “earned him the respect of viewers around the world”.
“I offered my deepest condolences and my commitment to ensuring accountability for his tragic murder,” he added.
Asked earlier Tuesday about the possibility of a new US investigation, State Department spokesman Ned Price, however, was content to invoke the July 4 statement.
“We believe the release of these findings demonstrates our commitment to a credible investigation, a thorough investigation and, above all, an investigation that establishes accountability,” he told reporters.
The Israeli army has “procedures to avoid civilian casualties” and “to ensure that this does not happen again”, he added.
Israel has always denied that the Al Jazeera journalist was deliberately targeted. The Israeli army had initially evoked the hypothesis that a Palestinian armed man was at the origin of the shooting, before retracting.
Mr. Blinken had criticized “the intrusion of the Israeli police” during the funeral of the journalist. Israeli police armed with batons had tried to disperse a crowd waving Palestinian flags. Following this intervention, the coffin almost fell from the hands of the carriers, but was caught in extremis.
Relatives of Shireen Abu Akleh must also meet congressional officials who have called for an FBI investigation.
“If we allow Shireen’s murder to be forgotten, we are sending the message that the lives of American citizens overseas don’t matter, that the lives of Palestinians living under Israeli occupation don’t matter. importance, and that the bravest journalists in the world, those who cover the human impact of armed conflict and violence, can be sacrificed”, noted Tony Abu Akleh, before the talks with the American leaders.