The DOJ has failed to provide any information about a promised investigation since 2022; Israel has killed at least 108 more journalists since Abu Akleh
Washington, D.C., July 29, 2024 – The Department of Justice (DOJ) has failed to inform the public about progress into its two-year-old investigation of the killing of American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh by Israel Defense Forces, said DAWN today. In a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, and FBI Director Christopher Wray, DAWN urged the DOJ to publish an interim report on the investigation and to ensure accountability for the brutal and senseless targeted killing of Abu Akleh.
"Perhaps the DOJ thinks we will forget about the murder of Shireen Abu Akleh as well as the investigation it promised the American people two years ago, but we have not," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Executive Director of DAWN. "The DOJ should take responsibility for its apparent failure to make progress on this investigation, which has fueled Israeli impunity, leading to the systematic and widespread killings of Palestinian journalists, at least 108 since Abu-Akleh's 2022 killing."
The IDF shot and killed Shireen Abu Akleh, a dual Palestinian-American citizen and a celebrated Al-Jazeera journalist, on May 11, 2022, during a raid into the West Bank city of Jenin. Several eyewitness accounts and investigations concluded that the IDF deliberately targeted Abu Akleh, who was clearly identifiable in her vest marked "PRESS." The IDF sniper who deliberately targeted and killed Abu Akleh shot her in the head.
In early November 2022, Israeli media reported that Israel the FBI informed Israel it had opened its own investigation into the killing of Abu Akleh, prompting Congressional calls for transparency in that investigation. Over the past two years, however, it appears the current U.S. probe has made little to no public progress and has failed to bring the culpable parties to justice. The DOJ has provided no information whatsoever to the public or to the family of Abu Akleh about progress in its investigation. Israeli officials stated from the outset that they would not cooperate with the FBI investigation.
"Without an interim update on the investigation or a concluding report, it is hard to take seriously U.S. claims that it will vigorously investigate and hold accountable extrajudicial killings of American citizens," said Michael Schaeffer Omer-Man, Director of Research for Israel-Palestine at DAWN. "The lack of communicable progress also adds to the grief felt by the Abu Akleh family, who filed a formal complaint with the ICC in May 2022 about Abu Akleh's killing by IDF forces."
In the letter, DAWN raised several questions regarding the DOJ's investigatory steps, including whether investigators have gathered physical evidence, interviewed witnesses, and obtained medical records. DAWN also asked the DOJ to describe the extent of Israeli cooperation with its investigation. The American public has every right to have this basic information about the investigation the DOJ has promised if only to reassure the public that it is taking seriously its responsibility to protect and defend Americans subject to violence overseas.
DAWN urged the DOJ to provide a timely response to these questions and to make public the results of the investigation to date. The organization remains committed to protecting journalists and promoting human rights and democracy in the Middle East, as envisioned by its late founder, Jamal Khashoggi.
