Defense Minister Benny Gantz addressed the Knesset plenum on Wednesday just hours after Al-Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh was killed while covering IDF activity in Jenin, saying Israeli forces would never deliberately target a journalist.
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"I would like to express my sorrow over her death; Israel considers it paramount to protect human life and freedom of the press," Gantz told lawmakers. He added, "IDF troops would never deliberately hurt journalists, and any attempt to suggest otherwise lacks any validity."
He also defended Israel's public diplomacy campaign to explain the unfolding of events that led to the tragic death of the reporter, whose circumstances are still being investigated. "The MKs and others who are lamenting the work of our information agencies and the IDF SPokesperson's Unit are making baseless accusations; I would like to lend my support to the fighters and the entire gamut of units that have been partaking in this effort to provide security for Israelis and to reveal the truth as it is," Gantz said. He noted that "according to an initial investigation the IDF has conducted over the past several hours, it appears that no [Israeli] fire was directed toward the reporter, but we will continue our investigation; in fact, footage taken at the scene shows massive and indiscriminate fire by Palestinian terrorists."
IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi announced the creation of a special panel to investigate the incident.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called the Al-Jazeera offices in Israel in order to express his condolences on the death of Abu Akleh. "Palestine lost one of its truth warriors, someone who tried to convey the Palestinian story to the world and was witness to the crimes of the Israeli occupation against the Palestinian people," Abbas said.
A senior official in the Palestinian Authority told Israel Hayom that Ramallah categorically rejects the Israeli assertion that Palestinian terrorists were responsible for Abu Akleh's death. The official added that the PA plans to petition the US in order to launch an independent investigation that would include Palestinian investigators but no Israelis.
"If this was a Jewish journalist you would have accused us of terrorism, and the US would have been supporting you," the official said. "We want Israel to be held accountable and we won't accept apologies. We will continue to monitor this affair and use any available legal means at our disposal to act, including through the International Criminal Court.
Palestinian Authority Civil Affairs Minister Hussein Al-Sheikh said on Twitter, "We hold the occupation government responsible for the assassination of journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh, may God have mercy on her. We deny what the PM of the occupation government announced that they were heading to the ##PA to conduct an investigation into her assassination." He added, "We reconfirm that the #Palestinian Authority will transfer this file to the International Criminal Court ( #ICC )."
According to a preliminary autopsy conducted by Palestinians in Nablus, Abu Akleh suffered a direct hit in her head, which caused a massive traumatic injury to the skull and brain. The round has been taken out of her body and will undergo ballistic investigation. The head of the autopsy institute said there was no indication that the shots were fired from close proximity of fewer than three feet.
The Al Jazeera reporter was shot dead during an Israeli raid early Wednesday, with Palestinians and the news channel accusing Israel of killing her and Israel's leader saying she was likely hit by Palestinian fire.
Abu Akleh, 51, a Palestinian-American, was wearing a press vest that clearly marked her as a journalist while reporting in the city of Jenin, the Qatar-based outlet said.
She was covering the latest arrest operation launched by the Israeli military amid deadly Arab attacks in Israel. The death of a prominent, veteran reporter for the popular news channel seemed likely to add more fuel to a surging conflict.
The Israeli military said its troops came under heavy fire during the Jenin operation. Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, in a statement, said "it appears likely that armed Palestinians who were firing indiscriminately at the time were responsible for the unfortunate death of the journalist."
"Very sad to learn of the death of American and Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh," Tom Nides, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, wrote on Twitter. "I encourage a thorough investigation into the circumstances of her death and the injury of at least one other journalist today in Jenin."
Bennett said Israel had offered to conduct a joint autopsy and investigation with the PA, whose spokesman rejected the proposal and called for an international inquiry instead.
A US Embassy spokesperson in Jerusalem said Abu Akleh had covered issues in the Middle East and internationally for more than two decades and was "deeply respected by many Palestinians and others around the world".
Qatar's deputy foreign minister, on Twitter, said Qatar "condemns in the strongest terms (the journalist's) assassination by Israeli occupation forces".
Some of the recent perpetrators of terrorism in Israel have come from Jenin. The city has been a main target of Israeli arrest raids in the West Bank that have often sparked clashes.
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