Four Years Since the Loss of Shireen Abu Akleh: Blood in Jenin and Unanswered Questions of Justice Haunt the Killer

The fourth anniversary of the assassination of the journalistic icon Shireen Abu Akleh arrives, bringing back memories of that harsh moment on May 11, 2022, when her voice fell silent in the Jenin camp. Shireen was not just a passerby in the field; she was a witness to decades of conflict, before her blood-soaked body became a global symbol embodying the suffering of journalists under occupation.

Born in Jerusalem in 1971, Shireen carved out her professional path with determination after leaving architectural studies to enroll at Yarmouk University and study media. She moved between international and local institutions such as UNRWA and Monte Carlo, until she settled at the 'Masader' office in 1997, becoming a familiar face in every Palestinian and Arab home following the details of the Intifada and invasions.

Shireen was distinguished by her calm and composed style, skillfully balancing the sanctity of the news with a humanitarian bias towards the victim without exaggeration or showmanship. Her reports walked a fine line combining the intensity of the field with the discipline of language, earning her the trust of the public and the respect of colleagues worldwide.

On the morning of the assassination, Shireen was wearing full safety gear, including a helmet and a protective vest clearly marked 'PRESS'. Despite the absence of any armed confrontations at that point, an Israeli sniper targeted her with a fatal bullet, a crime documented by camera lenses and the testimonies of colleagues who were beside her under the tree.

Initially, the official occupation narrative attempted to blame Palestinian militants, but international pressure and independent investigations forced it to retract and admit the high probability of its soldiers' responsibility. Investigations by major international newspapers such as 'The New York Times' and 'The Washington Post' concluded that the targeting was precise and came from Israeli forces stationed in the area.

A recent documentary produced by the 'Zaytoun' platform in 2025 revealed the name of the sniper responsible for the shooting, 'Alon Skagio' from the elite 'Duvdevan' unit. The investigation indicated that the army later transferred him from his unit to protect him from prosecution, before he was killed by an explosive device during a military operation in Jenin in 2024.

The biggest surprise revealed by the documentary was that officials in former US President Joe Biden's administration knew of Israel's responsibility for the killing from the very first hours. Reports confirmed that an Israeli general informed the American side of the truth immediately after the incident, raising major questions about the reasons for the delay in justice and accountability.

The Committee to Protect Journalists is currently criticizing what it describes as the 'stagnation' in the FBI investigation announced in late 2022. The committee asserts that there are no public updates or a clear timeline for the investigation, despite the willingness of Palestinian witnesses to cooperate fully and provide their official testimonies to the American authorities.

The occupation authorities strongly opposed external investigations, with then-Defense Minister Benny Gantz describing the American investigation as a 'grave mistake'. This refusal to cooperate reflects Israel's policy of impunity, which observers believe has encouraged the continued targeting of media personnel in the occupied territories.

Shireen's assassination opened the door to a more brutal pattern of targeting journalists, with statistics indicating the killing of approximately 240 journalists in Gaza during the recent war. The protection provided by international law is no longer sufficient against bullets that target the camera as an inconvenient witness to field crimes.

Journalist Shatha Hanaysha, who was accompanying Shireen at the moment of her death, recounts how that moment changed her life forever and caused her deep psychological trauma. Shatha emphasizes that targeting a journalist not only kills them physically but aims to terrorize the entire professional environment and push journalists away from documenting the truth in hot zones.

Shireen's case has become an international human rights file, with the 'Masader' network and the martyr's family submitting comprehensive files to the International Criminal Court in The Hague. These files are based on forensic evidence and video materials proving deliberate sniping, in an attempt to break the wall of international silence and impose sanctions on perpetrators of crimes against journalists.

International organizations such as 'Reporters Without Borders' stand in solidarity with these efforts, warning that closing Shireen's case without accountability means giving a green light to target more journalists. The ongoing legal battle aims to make Shireen's case a turning point in protecting journalistic work globally, not just in Palestine.

Despite four years passing, Shireen Abu Akleh's image remains present in every field, and her voice echoes in the memory of generations as an icon of truth and professionalism. The case remains a true test of the world's conscience and the ability of international institutions to uphold justice, far from narrow political calculations that protect killers.

Shireen was not just a correspondent; she was a calm voice in the heart of the storm, transformed by a treacherous bullet from a news carrier into the news itself.