London – More than 30 human rights groups and press freedom advocates gathered to demand that the Israeli government investigate the incident. Death of Al Jazeera TV reporter Shireen Abu AklehIt took place on May 11 in the West Bank.
Last week, the Israeli military said it did not plan to investigate the circumstances of the fire between Israeli soldiers and Palestinian snipers in the city of Jenin, where Abu Akleh and other media professionals covered the attack.
Relatives of the Palestinian reporter, who also has US citizenship, contacted three other journalist organizations to file a new complaint with the International Criminal Court (ICC), known as The Hague Court, so that the murder can be investigated.
Complaint about death of Al Jazeera journalist to be submitted to ICC
In the same attack, Shireen Abu Akleh, as well as another Al Jazeera journalist, was shot in Jenin. Ali Samoudi was shot in the shoulder, not serious and was discharged from the hospital.
For the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), Samoudi can provide crucial testimony regarding its own shooting and Shireen’s death.
Together with the organization, the Palestinian Journalists’ Union (PJS) and the International Center for Justice for Palestinians (ICJP), the family of the murdered reporter applied to the International Criminal Court about the case.
The federation said in April that the IFJ had already asked the ICC to launch an investigation into “the systematic persecution, mutilation and murder of journalists and the destruction of media infrastructure”.
“Shireen was killed a few days after the ICC prosecutor acknowledged receipt of the first complaint.”
The federation explains that in February, The Hague Court ruled that its criminal jurisdiction also covers the “situation in Palestine” and that its territorial scope covers allegations that occur in “Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.”
“This, for the first time, provides an opportunity for real accountability for Israel’s policy of allegedly attacking journalists and could lead to a formal investigation and possible prosecution by the ICC prosecutor.”
Therefore, the three organizations representing Al Jazeera journalists who were attacked by Israeli troops believe that the country should be held responsible for violating international law for crimes against the press.
“Shireen is not anonymous or statistics. He was not a terrorist. He was one of us,” says ICJP director Tayab Ali.
“Shireen’s work has allowed the world to know what is happening in Palestine.
Journalists like Shireen and Ali are crucial in holding governments that violate international law to account.
Israel’s aggressive and excessive use of force has resulted in irreversible damage and the death of an innocent journalist. This cannot go on any longer.”
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Organizations demand Israeli investigation into death of Al Jazeera journalist
Human rights groups also met to demand that Israel investigate the death of Shireen Abu Akleh. In a document released this week, 34 organizations opposed the Israeli government’s ignoring the case.
Organizations that have signed the document include the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Article 19, 7amleh – Arab Center for the Advancement of Social Media, the International Press Institute (IPI), PEN International, and the World Association of Newspapers and News Editors. (WAN-IFRA).
We demand that the Israeli government and all other states fulfill their responsibilities to ensure that crimes against journalists are fully investigated and prosecuted.”
In the text, the organizations highlight that Abu Akleh is one of the most respected journalists in Palestine and has been reporting in the West Bank for more than two decades. His death shocked the region and the world, they point out.
“We draw attention to this latest case as one of a wider pattern of violence against journalists and media workers in Palestine.
According to UNESCO data, at least 23 journalists have been killed and hundreds injured or subjected to violence in Palestine since 2002.
The groups referred to attacks by Israeli forces on journalists and media companies, such as when the Associated Press and Al Jazeera offices were bombed in the Gaza Strip in May 2021.
The document reminds us that it is the duty of states to investigate all attacks against journalists “quickly, thoroughly and independently” and prosecute those responsible.
“This obligation is well established in international and regional human rights instruments, as well as in various UN protocols and resolutions that require States to provide effective measures for human rights violations.
Israel is among the many states in the world that do not fulfill this obligation. Many murders of journalists remain unsolved, which has fueled a pervasive culture of violence and impunity for crimes against the media at the global level.”
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The organizations also draw attention to the fact that the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh represents a particularly horrific attack on the press, due to Israeli allegations of human rights violations in the occupied Palestinian territories.
“The Israeli government’s announcement that it will not investigate this murder any time soon adds to these concerns,” he said.
For this reason, the groups that signed the document listed concrete steps to ensure that the Al Jazeera journalist’s case does not go unpunished:
• The Israeli government must fulfill its international obligations to conduct a full, transparent and independent investigation into the murder of Shireen Abu Akleh and prosecute those responsible.
This investigation should involve the full participation of independent international experts or observers and should follow UN protocols for conducting investigations into human rights violations.
• There should also be an international task force to investigate this attack and ensure the reliability and impartiality of procedures and results.
Ideally, such a task force should be led by UN Special Rapporteurs with mandates that include oversight on issues related to the safety of journalists or human rights abuses.
• Unless an independent and impartial investigation is conducted by the Israeli government, the International Criminal Court (ICC) should conduct an investigation into the circumstances of Abu Akleh’s killing and the attack on his colleagues to determine whether it constitutes a crime. Fight under the ICC Rome Statute.
• Governments, especially Israel’s allies, should hold the country accountable for its international obligations to protect press safety in Palestine and to end impunity for crimes against journalists.
Governments should also urge Israel to cooperate fully in any international investigation into this crime and other investigations into human rights abuses by Israeli forces in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
• Governments, including multilateral institutions and coalitions, must take clear steps to end impunity for crimes against journalists at the global and local levels.
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source: Noticias
