JERUSALEM — One year after the murder of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, FBI agents investigating the shooting have yet to speak with key witnesses in the case, raising questions about the progress of the international investigation.
The death of Abu Akleh, 51, a correspondent for the Al Jazeera news channel and one of the Middle East’s most prominent journalists, sparked global outrage that intensified after the Israeli police cracked down on his funeral.
Israel initially blamed the Palestinian gunmen, but later admitted that it was most likely an Israeli soldier who accidentally fired the fatal shot during a raid on a refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. No one in the Israeli army has been prosecuted and the army has not announced any disciplinary action.
The defenders have renewed their calls for justice after 12 months that have brought little relief to their family or other Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, where the escalation of violence has raised fears of a broader conflict.
At a Jerusalem church this week, family and colleagues gathered to honor Abu Akleh’s memory. A photograph of her in front of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem was placed by the altar as other Palestinian journalists wept over her.
“The past year has been beyond devastating. It has been very difficult for us to understand this loss,” her niece Lina Abu Akleh told NBC News in an interview ahead of the anniversary on Thursday. “We do not want another day to pass without justice. We want to be able to go to sleep, knowing that the soldier who killed her is responsible.»
Abu Akleh was a US citizen, and her family and some Democrats in Congress say they don’t think it’s credible that Israel’s military would investigate itself, leaving their hopes of accountability largely on the FBI.
But a year after the May 11, 2022 shooting, the FBI has yet to make contact with Shatha Hanaysha, a Palestinian journalist who was walking with Abu Akleh when he was shot and struggled to help her in her final moments. “There is no serious investigation,” Hanaysha said in an interview. «I was just talking on air to kill the story.»
Walid Al-Omari, Al Jazeera’s bureau chief in the region, also said the FBI had not contacted him or his staff, including the TV crew who were with Abu Akleh when he was shot.
The Biden administration had initially held back from a full investigation despite pressure from the United Nations and some Democratic lawmakers.
When that changed, the Israeli government announced in November that it would not cooperate with the FBI investigation.
Israel’s then defense minister, Benny Gantz, denounced the US decision to investigate the shooting as «a serious mistake» and accused Washington of «interference in Israel’s internal affairs.»
Without Israel’s cooperation, the FBI cannot speak to key figures in the Israeli military, including top brass and troops on the ground during the raid on the West Bank city of Jenin.
The result is that so far FBI investigators appear to be in no public contact with Palestinian witnesses who are eager to speak and unable to contact Israeli witnesses. The FBI declined to comment, in keeping with its policy of not speaking about ongoing investigations.
Israel’s Defense Ministry did not respond to a request for comment on the FBI investigation, saying officials were dealing with ongoing fighting in Gaza.
Lina Abu Akleh, the niece, said: “We are hopeful that the FBI will complete a thorough and independent criminal investigation. This is an important step for us towards accountability.”
Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., has become a leading voice in Congress to push the US government to do more in the Abu Akleh case. “I don’t think the Biden administration has done everything possible to ensure accountability. I don’t think this has been given the focus that it should have been,” he told NBC News.
Van Hollen’s current focus is to gain congressional access to a report compiled by Army Lt. Gen. Michael R. Fenzel, who is stationed in Jerusalem and tasked with coordinating security matters between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
Fenzel’s report is an overview of the Israeli and Palestinian investigations into Abu Akleh’s death, but is not expected to contain original investigative material.
The State Department has said it is determining the appropriate level of classification for the report before delivering it to Congress. Van Hollen said he expected to receive a copy in the next few weeks.
The senator said it was «worrying and disappointing» that the Israeli authorities refused to cooperate with the FBI investigation. “That is why I will continue to call on the Biden administration to use all the tools available to it to ensure that ultimately we are held accountable and justice is served,” he said.
Speaking at a congressional hearing last week, Yael Lempert, a senior US diplomat and President Joe Biden’s nominee as US ambassador to Jordan, said: “We continue to stress, at the Secretary of State level, the importance of accountability in his murder. . And we will continue to do so.»
Al Jazeera also submitted a formal request to the International Criminal Court to investigate the murder of Abu Akleh. The Israeli government said it would not allow its soldiers to be questioned as part of any external investigation.