The family of Shireen Abu Akleh has formally submitted a complaint to the international criminal court (ICC) including evidence from a new report that found the veteran Palestinian-American journalist was deliberately killed by Israeli forces.
“The evidence is overwhelming. It’s been over four months since Shireen was killed. Our family shouldn’t have to wait another day for justice,” her family wrote in a statement after the official submission at The Hague on Tuesday.
“It’s obvious that Israeli war criminals cannot investigate their own crimes. The US still has an obligation to investigate and take meaningful action for one of their own citizens. But when an individual state fails to protect its own citizens, it’s the responsibility of the international community to protect them instead.”
Abu Akleh, 51, a well-known figure in the Arab world, was shot in the head in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin in May while covering an Israel Defence Forces (IDF) raid.
Israel initially blamed the Al Jazeera reporter’s death on Palestinian militants, but after widespread international outrage later said there was a “high possibility” she was killed by an Israeli soldier. The IDF maintains the shooting was accidental, and therefore a criminal investigation is not warranted.
Several journalistic investigations as well as a UN probe have concluded that Israeli forces are responsible for killing Abu Akleh.
A new joint report from Forensic Architecture, a research agency based at Goldsmiths, University of London, and al-Haq, a respected Palestinian human rights organisation, released the same day as the ICC complaint submission, alleges the reporter, along with her colleagues and a civilian who tried to administer first aid, were deliberately targeted.
Researchers used drone surveys, spatial and audio analysis, geolocated video and photos from witnesses and previously unseen footage recorded by an Al Jazeera videojournalist at the scene to create a digital reconstruction of events.
By tracking the movements of the various actors and the trajectory and dispersion of the shots, including the Israeli sniper’s precise angle of fire, the investigation found that the marksman was able to clearly identify the group as journalists.
It also ruled out the repeated IDF defence that the soldiers returned fire after coming under attack by Palestinian gunmen, and found that after Abu Akleh was killed, those who tried to help her were also targeted.
According to the report, the sniper shot three rounds of fire: an initial six shots, then after eight seconds, another seven. A bullet in the second burst of fire hit Abu Akleh just under her helmet.
Two minutes later, there were another three shots, which hindered efforts to help her by colleagues and a passing civilian. All the shots fired were aimed above the shoulders, meaning they were intended to kill.
In a statement, the Israeli army said: “The IDF rejects the claims that Ms. Shireen Abu Akleh was deliberately shot and that the IDF examination conducted regarding the circumstances of her death is biased and misleading. Since the devastating incident, the IDF has thoroughly reviewed the circumstances surrounding [her death].
“The IDF sees great importance in maintaining the freedom of the press and regrets harm to civilians, including during exchanges of fire and active combat scenarios. The IDF standard operating procedures reflect these principles and are applied in order to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and to journalists in particular.”
The investigation by al-Haq and Forensic Architecture, along with a legal brief by al-Haq, have been addended to the Abu Akleh family’s ICC case.
If there was any doubt in anyone’s mind about who shot Shireen Abu Aqleh and whether or not this was a targeted attack, our report now effectively puts an end to all of those doubts,” Forensic Architecture’s lead Palestine-Israel researcher for the project said.
“What is left now is for concerned citizens, for human rights organisations, and for the international community to activate and mobilise our findings to ensure the protection of Palestinian journalists covering the Israeli occupation.”
In April, a coalition of the International Federation of Journalists, the Palestinian Press Syndicate, and leading human rights lawyers submitted an initial complaint to the ICC over the systematic targeting of Palestinian journalists. Abu Akleh was killed a few days later, and Al Jazeera filed its own case asking the ICC to address her killing in late May.
The ICC decided in 2021 that it had a mandate to investigate violence and war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territories. Israel is not a member, and does not recognise the court’s authority.
