Department of State official reiterates US is pressing Israel to ‘review its policies’ after Al Jazeera reporter’s killing.
Washington, DC – A spokesperson for the US State Department has faced a barrage of questions about what the United States has done to get accountability for the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh, the Al Jazeera journalist who was fatally shot by Israeli forces last year. At a news briefing on Wednesday, which coincided with World Press Freedom Day, Vedant Patel repeatedly told reporters that Washington is seeking accountability by asking Israel to review its military rules of engagement.
“[Reviewing] rules of engagement sounds like it’s something to deter and prevent this [from] happening again,” one visibly frustrated journalist said. “Is there an active effort of the US seeking accountability from Israel?”
Patel responded, “There is an active effort. And since Shireen’s tragic death, we have continued to press Israel to closely review its policies and practices on rules of engagements and consider additional steps to mitigate risk of civilian harm and protect journalists.”Next week will mark the anniversary of the killing of Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American reporter who was fatally shot by Israeli forces on May 11, 2022, while covering a military raid in the city of Jenin in the occupied West Bank.
Al Jazeera Media Network said that day that she was “assassinated in cold blood”. But Washington has rejected efforts to seek accountability for the killing at the International Criminal Court (ICC), drawing condemnation from press freedom and Palestinian rights advocates who have called on US President Joe Biden’s administration to demand justice. Israel, which rights groups accuse of imposing a system of apartheid on Palestinians, receives at least $3.8bn in US security assistance annually.
Source: aljazeera.com
Wednesday, April 29, 2026
