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el: Calls for U.S. Investigation into Reporter's Death Ignore the PA's Refusal to Cooperate
(Algemeiner) Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Herzog on Friday criticized a demand by 57 House Democrats for a U.S. investigation into the death of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh who was fatally shot while reporting on a gunfight between IDF troops and Palestinian terrorists in the West Bank city of Jenin earlier this month. Herzog said the Congressional letter "does not offer a fair representation of the case, ignores important context of the events leading to Ms. Abu Akleh's tragic death and reaches the wrong conclusion." "On May 11, 2022, Israeli security forces operated in Jenin to thwart yet another impending terror attack and were confronted by heavily armed Palestinian militants, most of them affiliated with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad - a U.S.-designated terror organization," he said. "Shireen Abu Akleh died in the exchange of fire in this charged environment." "The letter ignores the fact that Israel has, from the outset, called for an impartial joint Israeli-Palestinian investigation with the U.S. in an observer role. Our call was flatly rejected by the PA, which is cynically using Ms. Abu Akleh's death to instigate an anti-Israel propaganda campaign." Herzog noted the PA's refusal to give Israel access to the bullet that killed Abu Akleh, making impossible an Israeli ballistic assessment that could determine if it was fired by an IDF weapon. He also said that those claiming that there were no clashes or shooting in the area of the incident were ignoring evidence, including statements from the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and video footage.