In Pics: Palestinians hold funeral procession for martyr Shereen Abu Aqleh

CAIRO - 12 May 2022: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas led, on Thursday, the funeral procession of the Palestinian journalist Shereen Abu Aqleh, who was killed on Wednesday by the Israeli occupation forces in the West Bank refugee camp of Jenin.

“The funeral procession set off from the Istihsari Hospital in Al-Rihan neighborhood and made its way to the presidential complex, al-Muqata‘a, where a grand state memorial was held in the attendance of President Mahmoud Abbas, Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh along with a host of officials and hundreds of mourners,” the state-owned news agency WAFA reported.

 

President Abbas decided to award the martyr Shereen Abu Aqleh the Jerusalem Star Medal. “Shereen sacrificed her life in defense of her cause and was an honest voice, conveying the suffering of Jerusalem and the camps and the incursions into villages and camps,” said Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Abbas held the Israeli occupation authorities fully responsible for the murder of Shereen Abu Aqleh, saying “We reject the joint investigation with the Israeli occupation authorities because they are the ones who committed the crime. We will sue the criminals responsible for the killing of Shereen Abu Aqleh at the International Criminal Court,” he added.

 

Abu Aqleh, a Palestinian-US Christian citizen, will be buried on Friday in a cemetery next to her mother, WAFA added.

Egypt’s Foreign Ministry urged an immediate investigation into the murder of the Palestinian Journalist for justice to be served . In a statement on Wednesday, the ministry denounced in the strongest terms the brutal murder of the Palestinian journalist and correspondent of Al-Jazeera channel near Jenin refugee camp in the occupied Palestinian territories. The ministry also denounced the injury of journalist Ali al-Samoudi.

 

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ahmed Hafez denounced the crime committed against the Palestinian correspondent while on duty, in a flagrant violation of the international humanitarian law’s principles and rules. This is also a blatant violation of the freedom of journalism and media and the right of expression, the ministry spokesman added.

At the end of the statement, the ministry expressed sincere condolences to the family of Shereen Abu Aqleh and the Palestinian people amid this great affliction.

 

The ministry stated that Arab journalism has lost one of its great media professionals, wishing the injured journalist a speedy recovery.

Additionally, the Egyptian Journalists Syndicate condemned Wednesday the killing of the Palestinian journalist by the Israeli occupation demanding all concerned United Nations agencies "to protect Palestinian colleagues while practicing their profession from the Israeli forces' aggression against them."

The syndicate extended its condolences to the family and friends of Shereen, as well as to the Palestinian press community. It also demanded the international community, and all relevant international organizations to hold Israel accountable and to start an expansive investigation on this crime and others previously committed against Palestinian journalists. 

The syndicate described Palestinian journalists working on the occupied lands as the world's eye on the truth about what is happening in Palestine, calling on them to exercise caution while doing their job. The syndicate concluded by asserting its faith in the Palestinian People's right in freedom and an independent state in alignment with international legitimacy resolutions. 

Abu Aqleh was shot dead while reporting on a raid committed by the Israeli forces in the West Bank's Jenin. Also, Samoudi was shot while reporting on the same incident and is still receiving treatment.

For its part, Al-Azhar issued a statement Wednesday, where it strongly denounced the assassination of the Palestinian journalist. "This crime, committed against the press and the journalists, strongly shows to the world Israel's terrorism and crimes even against a journalist who has not carried a weapon and did nothing but existing as a Palestinian journalist," the statement said.

Al-Azhar mourned the deceased and described her as the "loud voice of truth," extending its sincere condolences to the Palestinian people, as well as Abu Aqleh's family and colleagues.