The United States said it “welcomed” the Israeli military’s review into the circumstances surrounding Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh’s death.
Israel’s investigation concluded that there was a “high probability” that the Al Jazeera journalist was killed by an Israeli soldier in May, albeit accidentally.
“We welcome Israel’s review of this tragic incident, and again underscore the importance of accountability in this case, such as policies and procedures to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future,” US State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.
“The United States has made it a priority to mitigate and respond to civilian harm caused by military operations,” he continued. “The Department of Defense recently underscored the need to improve its own assessments and practices to ensure civilian harm mitigation and we will continue to share best practices with our military partners and allies around the world.”
“Our thoughts remain with the Abu Akleh family as they grieve this tremendous loss – and with the many others worldwide who brought Shireen and her news reports into their homes for more than two decades,” the statement said. “Not only was Shireen an American citizen, she was a fearless reporter whose journalism and pursuit of truth earned her the respect of audiences around the world.”
Israel’s army concluded that no rules of engagement were broken during the operation that resulted in Abu Akleh’s death.
“The soldier could not see her and could not see she was a journalist,” the Israeli official stated.
