Posted on 05/14/22
| News Source: i24
The UN Security Council urges an 'immediate, thorough, transparent, and fair and impartial investigation'
A Palestinian official said Saturday that the Palestinian Authority (PA) would welcome the involvement of international groups in a probe of the death of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh – who was killed earlier this week during an Israeli operation in the West Bank.
Aqleh’s death sparked an outpour of grief as footage of the reporter’s funeral showed Israeli police clashing with a crowd of Palestinian mourners in Jerusalem on Friday, drawing international condemnation.
The violence added to Palestinian outrage over Abu Aqleh’s killing, which threatened to fuel tensions that have been escalating since March.
While Palestinian authorities described the death of the reporter as an assassination by Israeli forces, Israel initially suggested that Palestinian fire could be to blame. Officials later said, though, that they would not rule out other possibilities.
The UN Security Council strongly condemned the killing of Abu Aqleh and called for an “immediate, thorough, transparent, and fair and impartial investigation.”
Hussein Al Sheik, a senior PA official, tweeted that it would welcome the participation of all international bodies in its inquiry.
The PA previously rejected an Israeli offer to conduct a joint investigation.
Al Sheikh earlier said on Twitter that the PA would conduct its own probe, and send its findings to Qatar, where the Al Jazeera media agency is based.