RIP Shireen Abu Akleh - Latin Patriarch Calls for Investigation of the Killing of a Catholic Palestinian Journalist in the West Bank

The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem released a statement over death of  Christian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh.  Latin Patriarch Pizzaballa sends a message of prayers and calling for an urgent and thorough investigation.

The 51-year-old Palestinian Christian journalist was covering the “Israeli army’s storming of [a] Jenin camp (northern West Bank) on Wednesday”, when she was “killed by the Israeli army”, this “according to eyewitnesses”. One of her colleagues “was also injured while performing his duty,” the statement goes on to say.

Shireen Abu Akleh was killed yesterday morning during an Israeli army operation in Jenin. Her death was unanimously condemned by various international figures, as well as Palestinian leaders and activists.

The Israeli government and Palestinian authorities have blamed each other for her death, but a preliminary examination of the event suggests that she died from a bullet fired, perhaps intentionally, by a member of the Israeli special forces involved in the operation.

She was a member of the Greek-Catholic community, and lectured on media and journalism at various universities.

The Christian journalist had a long career behind her, with 20 years of coverage of the Palestinian conflict.

Born in 1971 in East Jerusalem, Shireen Abu Akleh  graduated with a bachelor's degree in print journalism from Yarmouk University in Jordan.

Her family is originally from Bethlehem, but she was born and raised in Jerusalem where she completed her secondary education at the Rosary Sisters School in Beit Hanina.

Her funeral is scheduled at the Greek Catholic church near Jaffa Gate, followed by burial in the Christian cemetery on Mount Zion.

FULL TEXT Statement :

The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem expresses its shock at the death of the Palestinian reporter Shereen Abu Aqleh who, according to eyewitnesses, has been killed by the Israeli army, during coverage of the Israeli army’s storming of Jenin camp on Wednesday morning, May 11, 2022. We ask for a thorough and urgent investigation of all the circumstances of her killing and for bringing those responsible to justice. This blatant tragedy brings back to human conscience the need to find a just solution to the Palestinian conflict, which refuses to enter oblivion although 74 years have passed since the Nakba. 

We pray for the rest of Shereen's soul, who was an example of duty and a strong voice for her people, and ask God to grant her brother and relatives the consolation of faith. We pray that the Palestinian people find their way to freedom and peace. 

We pray for the recovery of journalist Ali Samouri, who was also injured while performing his duty, and for all journalists in the world who courageously perform their work.

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The journalist had worked for the Qatar-based satellite TV channel, al Jazeera,  since 1997.

After university, she returned to Palestine and worked for different employers, including UNRWA, Voice of Palestine Radio, Amman Satellite Channel, Miftah Foundation, and Radio Monte Carlo.

Sources: https://www.lpj.org/posts/statement-of-the-latin-patriarchate-of-jerusalem-on-the-death-of-shereen-abu-aqleh.html and Asia News it