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US DoS: Abu Akleh 'unintentionally' killed, Palestine refutes report
On Monday, the United States came down to its own verdict: Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was likely killed by gunfire from Israeli positions, but there was no reason for the US, as always, to believe that her murder was intentional.
The US State Department said that Washington could not make a "defintiive conclusion" on where the bullet came from.
"Ballistic experts determined the bullet was badly damaged, which prevented a clear conclusion," said Ned Price, State Department Spokesperson, after what he described as an "extremely detailed forensic analysis."
Read more: Palestine hands bullet that killed Shireen Abu Akleh over to US team
"By summarizing both investigations, the USSC [US Security Coordinator] concluded that gunfire from IDF positions was likely responsible for the death of Shireen Abu Akleh," the State Department said, referring to the Israeli occupation forces.
"The USSC found no reason to believe that this was intentional but rather the result of tragic circumstances…"
"We will remain engaged with Israel and the PA on next steps and urge accountability. We again offer our deepest condolences to the Abu Akleh family," said the rare July 4 statement.
Shireen Abu Akleh, famed Al Jazeera journalist and veteran reporter, was murdered on May 11 when Israeli occupation forces storming the Jenin refugee camp, north of the West Bank, shot her with a live bullet to the head as she was covering the events of the storming.
Rejecting the Israeli US narrative
After knowing of the report, the Palestinian Authority rejected Washington's efforts to conceal the truth about the murder of Abu Akleh.
"We will not allow attempts to conceal the truth or to have shy references in pointing the finger of accusation (at) Israel," senior PA official Hussein Al-Sheikh tweeted.
This remark followed the "extremely detailed analysis" which came down to no "definitive conclusion" of how the bullet struck and killed the journalist.
The Palestinian Public Prosecution Office also rejected the report, asserting that there were no armed confrontations at the moment and area of the killing.
The Palestinian presidency accused the occupation government of trying to abandon its responsibility in Abu Akleh's killing, calling on the US administration to "preserve its credibility."
On his part, a member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Wasel Abu Yousef, accused the United States of "protecting Israel after the forensic examination failed to reach a conclusion about the source of the bullet that killed Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh."
Abu Youssef told Reuters, "The truth is clear, but the US administration is reluctant to announce it. We say that Israel killed Shireen Abu Aqleh, and it must bear responsibility for its crime."
Shireen Abu Akleh's family called on the United Nations and the International Criminal Court to take immediate measures to achieve justice after knowing of the report.
The family said, "There were many eyewitnesses to the killing, and we have reports from multiple local and international media, human rights organizations and the United Nations that an Israeli soldier fired the fatal shot, and that there were no other armed elements in Jenin where Shireen was killed."
"We will continue our procedures at the international courts. We will not allow attempts to conceal the truth or to have shy references in pointing the finger of accusation (at) Israel," Hussein Al-Sheikh wrote on Twitter.