Outgoing Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Tuesday reiterated his government's strong condemnation of an alleged US Justice Department investigation into the murder of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in the occupied West Bank. A spokesman for the Judiciary Department had no comment.
There were no details on when an investigation might begin and what it would entail, nor what the implications might be. But an FBI investigation into the actions of a ally would be a rare, if not unprecedented, move. , which threatens to strain the close ties between the countries as Israel moves towards the most right-wing government in its history.
After a swearing-in ceremony for Israel's newly elected parliament on Tuesday, Lapid vowed that Israel would not participate in a US probe into the fatal shooting of the 51-year-old prominent Al Jazeera correspondent last May in Jenin, a Palestinian city on the West Bank.
Referring to statements by Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz the day before, Lapid said that Israeli soldiers "are not being investigated by the FBI or by any foreign country or any kind of agency. Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority welcomed the news and pledged to fully cooperate with a US investigation, reflecting how the Abu Akleh case has become a sticking point in competing Israeli and Palestinian narratives.
This decision, while late, reflects the birth of an American conviction in without serious investigation by the Israelis," the Palestinian Foreign Ministry said. "(Your investigations) are nothing more than attempts to cover up criminals.
Palestinian officials, Abu Akleh's family and Al Jazeera have accused Israel of deliberately killing Abu Akleh. Several independent investigations, including that by The Associated Press, concluded that Abu Akleh was most likely killed by Israeli fire.
The death of the veteran journalist who has covered the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for a quarter century has resonated across the region and sparked global outrage, highlighting Israeli actions in the West Bank. The Biden administration will launch a full probe following an inconclusive State Department assessment of the deadly missile and the ambiguous findings of an Israeli military probe.
"She will use every investigative tool at her disposal to obtain answers about Shireen's murder and to bring those responsible for this atrocity to justice. An investigation "will bring our family closer to justice for Shireen," her statement said. Critics of Israel argue that history has shown that the Israeli military cannot credibly investigate or prosecute itself.
Israel says its investigation is independent and professional. "We will not abandon our soldiers to foreign investigations," Lapid told new lawmakers.
"Our strong protest has been conveyed to the American people at the appropriate levels. Although Lapid was ousted from his post after Israel's November 1 elections, his likely successor, former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is likely to maintain the same stance.
Israel first raised the possibility that Abu Akleh was killed by a Palestinian gunman during clashes between Israeli soldiers and militants, before acknowledging in September that there was a "high probability" that an Israeli soldier accidentally killed her. However, Israel has strenuously denied that its forces deliberately attacked it and has ruled out a criminal investigation.
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