UN officials call for an investigation into the killing of journalist Sherine Abu Aqleh

On May 11th, the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General of the United Nations confirmed that the killing of Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh is a crime.

“The killing of journalist Abu Aqila is a crime against the press,”

the United Nations News Center quoted the spokesman as saying in a statement.

 For its part, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed alarm over the murder of Shireen Abu Aqleh while covering an Israeli military operation in Jenin, Palestine.

In turn, the Director-General of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay, added her voice to the voices of condemnation that denounced the killing of Palestinian journalist Sherine Abu Akleh and demanded an investigation be conducted into the killing of Abu Akleh, especially as she clearly bore the badge of the press.

The Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wencesland, and the Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Lynne Hastings, condemned the killing of journalist Abu Aqila in Jenin in the occupied West Bank while covering the current events there.

The Special Coordinator called for an immediate investigation into the course of the incident, stressing the accountability of those responsible, and stressing the importance of not targeting journalists and media workers.

Hastings said: “While the United Nations salutes the freedom of the international press in Gaza, the Palestinian journalist Sherine Abu Aqleh was killed while covering the events which shows the dangers journalists face every day.”

Hastings called for immediate investigations to hold her killers accountable.

O. al-Mohammad