Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki has handed the International Criminal Court's prosecutor the official outcome of the Palestinian investigation into Israel's murder of veteran journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin last month.
The Hague, June 10 (RHC)-- Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki has handed the International Criminal Court's prosecutor the official outcome of the Palestinian investigation into Israel's murder of veteran journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin last month.
During a meeting in The Hague with ICC Public Prosecutor Karim Khan on Thursday, al-Maliki urged that the criminals responsible for targeting civilians, children, women, journalists, doctors and other protected groups be brought to international justice.
“Israel commits crimes in broad daylight, brags about its crimes, passes laws that promote war crimes and crimes against humanity, adopts budgets and sets policies, all in public, and kills in front of the cameras," the top Palestinian diplomat said. "What is the ICC Public Prosecutor waiting for in order to go ahead with a transparent and tangible investigation?"
Last month, the Palestinian foreign ministry announced that it had formally asked the ICC to investigate the killing of Abu Akleh. During the Thursday meeting, al-Maliki said Palestinians shouldn’t become the victim of double standards and selective justice by the Western countries, which are the main backers of the Tel Aviv regime.
Riyad al-Maliki further stressed the need for the ICC prosecutor to take concrete steps in dealing with the crimes of the Israeli occupying regime in Palestine, due to the gravity, size and nature of these crimes.
On May 11, wearing press attire, 51-year-old Shireen Abu Akleh was murdered in cold blood while covering an Israeli military raid in Jenin. Later, her funeral was attacked by Israeli forces, including her pallbearers.
Journalists at the scene said there were no Palestinian fighters present when their colleagues were shot directly, disputing an Israeli statement alleging the possibility that it was Palestinian fire.
The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate said it’s a crime committed in cold blood as part of the systematic targeting of Palestinian journalists. They have been warned that the already high rate of Israeli attacks against media workers in the occupied territories could even increase as long as Israeli troops receive impunity, as with Shireen’s death. An estimated 50 Palestinian journalists have been killed since 2000 in both the Gaza strip and the occupied west bank.
Western media and Western leaders have been accused of turning a blind eye to the breach of international law by the apartheid Israeli regime in the occupied Palestinian territories.
