British writer Jonathan Cook says that the major American media have conducted investigations into the killing of Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh, and all of them have concluded that an Israeli soldier is responsible for her killing.

He described this as a major blow to Israel, especially since those prestigious media organizations are usually seen as very sympathetic to Tel Aviv and not to the Palestinians.

In an article on the British Middle East Eye website, he added that these investigations made it difficult for Israel to hide its responsibility for the killing of Abu Aqila and the intention behind it, noting that firing the bullet that killed her was a clear goal, which is to execute her, as it hit a narrow area. exposed between her helmet and flak jacket marked "Press".

However, Cook says that the administration of US President Joe Biden will not be interested in these investigations, and that the only investigation it will pay attention to is the Israeli investigation.

Israel hopes interest wanes

He noted that these major media outlets kept the Palestinian journalist's killing in the headlines when Israel was hoping interest would wan quickly, as is the case with the vast majority of Palestinian deaths.

He went on to say that Israel recently tried to blame the Palestinian Authority for not cooperating by handing over the bullet that killed Abu Akleh or agreeing to a joint investigation.

The writer supports the Palestinian Authority in rejecting requests for cooperation because they were made in bad faith.

This authority notes that Israel will use any joint investigation to fabricate a "new lie".

However, Israel is not the only party disturbed by repeated investigations by the media.

The Biden administration, too, is in a state of embarrassment, with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken calling for an "independent and credible investigation" while his department has stressed the need for a "comprehensive, independent investigation."


two results

Cook said that there are two conclusions we must draw from the efforts to determine who is responsible for killing Abu Akleh: The first relates to the exceptional nature of the investigations conducted by the American media.

The world has become accustomed to not having to worry about killing Palestinians.

As for the anxiety that accompanied the killing of Shireen, it seems that there were unusual coincidences behind it.

She is a high-profile, internationally respected journalist, and holds American citizenship.

In other words, she was not seen as just an ordinary Palestinian, or even a Palestinian journalist, but rather as one of the Western media.

In fact, the American media could have conducted similar investigations into any number of Palestinian deaths at the hands of the Israeli security services, not just Abu Aqila, and they would have reached similar conclusions but they have consistently avoided doing so.

Cook argues that there is an inherent danger in focusing exclusively on Abu Akleh's murder, making it appear as though her death is an extraordinary event requiring an extraordinary investigation, when in fact it is yet another example of a longstanding pattern of lawlessness and human rights abuses.

The second conclusion is that Blinken and the Biden administration continue to insist on a comprehensive, independent, credible and transparent investigation, and their insistence aims to bury the case and reach no conclusion: the White House, of course, automatically ignores the results of the PA investigation that Abu Aqila launched She was deliberately shot by Israeli soldiers.

He acts as if the investigations conducted by these four major media organizations are not qualified.

Meanwhile, the administration itself shows no interest whatsoever in an investigation, despite pressure from Congress to get the FBI involved.


Goldstone investigation

Would Blinken prefer the United Nations to take over?

Not to be expected, given how the United States and Israel responded to the last major independent investigation by the United Nations into Israel's month-long attack on Gaza at the end of 2008.

Richard Goldstone, a prominent South African human rights defender, led a panel of experts that concluded that Israel committed a series of war crimes during its offensive, known to Israel as Cast Lead, as did "Palestinian militias."

The UN panel's report found that Israel adopted a policy that deliberately targets Palestinian civilians, who are the vast majority of the 1,400 Palestinians killed in the process.

Both the United States and Israel worked hard to bury the report.

Goldstone, a Jew, found himself openly isolated by the Jewish communities of the United States and South Africa.

In the end, he seemed to succumb to the pressure campaign, and lamented the report.

No one in Washington came to Goldstone's defense of a comprehensive, independent, credible, and transparent UN investigation. On the contrary: he was publicly mocked.

Another possibility that the writer raises, and arguably supposes that Blinken may support him, is that the International Criminal Court in The Hague will investigate the case.


He says that the United States demonstrated its true position on conducting a full, independent, credible and transparent investigation by that body two years ago, when the International Criminal Court tried to shed light on US war crimes in Afghanistan and Israel in the occupied Palestinian territories.

In response, Biden's predecessor (Donald Trump) imposed sanctions on the court, barred employees from entering the United States, and threatened to confiscate its assets.

The threat extended to anyone providing "material support" to the court, language often used in the context of terrorism.

The implication is that the investigation, as desired by all parties, is an investigation supervised only by Israel, which can be considered "comprehensive, independent, credible and transparent" to the United States.

As far as Washington is concerned, the investigation cannot be said to be "credible, independent and transparent" until the Palestinian Authority agrees to a joint investigation with Israel.

But Israel and the United States know very well that the Palestinian leadership will never agree to such "cooperation" because Israel's role will not be to find the truth but to plan a cover-up.

The writer concludes that the demand for a "credible, independent and transparent" investigation is a mystery to the US administration and its understanding of the investigation, which will never take place!

More importantly, this kind of impossible investigation can be blamed on the Palestinian Authority as obstructing the investigation, which is convenient for the United States and Israel.

As long as the Palestinians refuse to "cooperate," it is assumed that Israel's hands are tied.

The article concluded that the killing of Sherine not only revealed the fact that the Israelis are killing Palestinians with impunity, but also revealed that the Biden administration is not bothered by her killing or the impunity of the soldier who executed her. Israel is doing its best to investigate!