The US State Department said today, Sunday, that it is ready to provide assistance to the Palestinians and Israelis in carrying out an investigation into the assassination of Al-Jazeera correspondent Shireen Abu Aqleh, while the United Nations special rapporteur in the Palestinian territories said that the international community bears responsibility for Israel's impunity for the crimes it is committing against the Palestinians.

The spokesman for the US State Department said in a statement to Al-Jazeera Net that Washington is awaiting any request to provide assistance in the investigation of the assassination of Shireen Abu Aqleh from the Palestinian and Israeli sides, which has not happened so far, according to the same spokesman.

The US official added that the Israeli government said that there is no criminal investigation so far into the killing of the Al-Jazeera journalist.

The US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, said in a press interview that it is necessary to conduct a comprehensive and credible investigation into the assassination of Al-Jazeera correspondent Shireen Abu Akleh.

In response to a question about the possible consequences if the Israeli army was proven responsible for the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh, Blinken said in a press interview with Vice News that he would not delve into assumptions, and stressed the need to hold accountable those responsible for the killing of colleague Shireen Abu Akleh. .

Sec.

State Antony Blinken on the killing of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh: "There needs to be an investigation. And if wrong was done, there needs to be accountability."

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— VICE News (@VICENews) May 21, 2022

Congress message

On Friday, 56 members of the US Congress signed a letter calling on the US authorities to conduct an investigation into the killing of the late colleague.

In their letter, members of Congress expressed their deep concern over the killing of the Al Jazeera reporter, and called for the protection of journalists around the world at all costs.

In their letter, they said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the killing of Shireen Abu Aqleh as an insult to the press, and welcomed the ministry's statements and actions taken so far in support of a thorough investigation.

They also called on the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation "FBI" (FBI) to conduct this investigation, given what they described as the fragility of the situation in the region and the conflicting news about the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh.

And the French press agency reported that the Israeli ambassador in Washington, Michael Herzog, expressed his frustration with the message of US lawmakers regarding the investigation into the death of colleague Abu Aqila.

The ambassador added that Tel Aviv's appeal to the Palestinian Authority to conduct a joint investigation, including the presence of an American observer, was rejected by the Palestinian Authority, which was accused by the Israeli ambassador of using the death of Shirin Abu Akleh "with malice to provoke an anti-Israel propaganda campaign."

UN Rapporteur

In a related context, the United Nations Special Rapporteur in the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, said in an interview with the Italian "Derry" website that Israel's refusal to open an investigation into the killing of Shirin Abu Akleh is not surprising.

Francesca Albanese: Israel's refusal to open an investigation into the killing of Shirin Abu Akleh is not surprising (Al Jazeera)

The UN rapporteur said that the international community that has allowed her over the past decades to escape punishment for the crimes she commits against the Palestinians is responsible for this.

Albanese called for an investigation to be opened into the killing of Shireen Abu Aqleh, denouncing the Israeli obstacles impeding her entry to the Palestinian territories.

The international official called for dismantling what she called the "apartheid regime" imposed by Israel on the Palestinians, stressing the need for real political will to implement international law, such as the one we see now in Ukraine.

In a related context, the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate in Gaza organized a solidarity event, during which the picture of Al-Jazeera correspondent Sherine Abu Aqleh was hung on a mural entitled "The Martyrs of Truth from Palestinian Journalists." The mural included 55 journalists.

The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate called for holding accountable those responsible for the assassination of colleague Shireen Abu Aqleh, and for punishing the leaders of the occupation before international courts for its continuing crimes against the Palestinian people.