Al Jazeera denounces Israel's Shireen Abu Akleh probe, says army 'evading criminal responsibility'

Al Jazeera on Monday dismissed the results of an Israeli probe into the killing of its reporter Shireen Abu Akleh, calling it an attempt by the Israeli army to "evade criminal responsibility" for her death.

Abu Akleh, a veteran journalist, was killed by Israeli sniper fire while reporting on an Israeli raid on a refugee camp in Jenin on 11 May.

In its final investigation report on the killing, the Israeli army said Monday for the first time said that Abu Akleh had likely been shot by one of its officers – but "accidentally".

The Qatar-based media network said in a statement that the findings were an "elusive admission" and that the Israeli army was trying "to evade the criminal responsibility for the killing of Shireen, which has been proven by numerous independent and international investigations".

"Al Jazeera condemns the Israeli Occupation Forces’ reluctance to explicitly admit their crime and attempts to evade the prosecution of the perpetrators," the statement read.

The network called for an "independent international body" to investigate the assassination.

The Israeli army probe results were also slammed by Abu Akleh's family.

"We could never expect any type of accountability or legitimate investigation from the very entity responsible for gunning down an unarmed and clearly identifiable journalist," the slain reporter's niece, Lina Abu Akleh, said on Twitter.

Abu Akleh Family Response to Israel’s Statement on Shireen’s Killing

We could never expect any type of accountability or legitimate investigation from the very entity responsible for gunning down an unarmed and clearly identifiable journalist. pic.twitter.com/bTfUqj5KV3

— Lina Abu Akleh (@LinaAbuAkleh) September 5, 2022

Abu Akleh was shot despite wearing a helmet and a flak jacket clearly identifying her as a member of the press.

Investigations by leading human rights groups and media organisations including Al Jazeera have backed up eyewitness accounts that Abu Akleh was shot by Israeli forces.

Al Jazeera and the Palestinian Authority say they have referred Abu Akleh's killing to the International Criminal Court.

The US State Department, whose own investigation into the incident found that the dual US-Palestinian citizen was killed "unintentionally" by an Israeli bullet, on Monday welcomed the results of the Israeli probe.

"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," the State Department said.