Al Jazeera has filed a complaint with the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Israeli soldiers for the murder of Shireen Abu Aqla.
In May, a Palestinian-American journalist was fatally shot during an Israeli army operation in the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli military determined that one of its soldiers probably killed her, but determined that her death was accidental.
Al Jazeera stated that the claim was wholly false and that its evidence demonstrated that it was a “planned murder.”
Former Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid stated, “No one will probe [Israel Defense Forces] soldiers, and certainly not Al Jazeera, would preach to us about morality in wartime.
Israel does not recognize the authority of the International Criminal Court and has refused to cooperate with an investigation by the prosecutor of the Hague-based court into suspected war crimes in the occupied areas.
On 11 May, 51-year-old Shireen Abu Aqla traveled to the Jenin refugee camp to report for Al Jazeera’s Arabic TV channel on an Israeli operation that had resulted in firefighting between Israeli forces and Palestinian terrorists.
She was killed while traveling along a road with other journalists, one of whom was also shot and wounded. She was wearing a press-emblazoned helmet and a press-marked blue flak jacket.
Journalists, bystanders, and Palestinian authorities said that the shooting originated from Israeli troops stationed approximately 200 meters (656 feet) away; these charges were later supported by investigations conducted by the United Nations and other media outlets.
Initially, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) stated that it was impossible to determine who killed Abu Aqla. In September, however, a top official told the media that there was a great possibility that she was accidentally shot by an IDF soldier who did not recognize her as a journalist.
Al Jazeera, which is headquartered in Doha and subsidized by the Qatari government, stated on Tuesday claiming that its legal team had done a thorough investigation into the murder and “uncovered new evidence,” including eyewitness statements and various videos.
“Al Jazeera emphasized in its submission to the ICC Prosecutor that new witness testimony and video footage demonstrate that Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) fired directly at Shireen and her colleagues,” it stated. “The Israeli government’s assertion that Shireen was accidentally killed in a firefight is entirely baseless.”
“The information given to the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) proves unequivocally that there was no other firing in the area where Shireen was other than the IOF [Israeli Occupation Forces] firing directly at her.
The journalists were in plain view of the IOF as they went slowly down the road in a group while wearing their characteristic media vests, and there were no other individuals there.”
The statement said, “The evidence indicates that this murder was part of a larger operation to silence Al Jazeera.”
A lawyer for Al Jazeera, Rodney Dixon KC, stated that the alleged campaign included the Israeli air strike that destroyed a tower block in Gaza City that housed the offices of Al Jazeera and the Associated Press (AP) news agency in May 2021, during a conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants.
The family of Abu Aqla, who filed their complaint with the ICC in September, stated that they supported Al Jazeera’s application.
Lina Abu Aqla, her niece, stated during a news conference in The Hague, “The evidence is abundantly clear; we expect the ICC to take action.”
There was no immediate response from the ICC, but any individual, organization, or nation may submit information to the OTP regarding alleged crimes within the court’s jurisdiction. The OTP conducts a preliminary investigation to see whether there are sufficient grounds to open an investigation.
Following requests from Abu Aqla’s family and members of Congress, the US Department of Justice allegedly informed Israel last month that the FBI had begun a murder probe. The departing Israeli defense minister called the decision a “mistake” and stated that Israel would not cooperate.
