TEHRAN — After killing the veteran Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, the Israeli authorities have resorted to their old habit of distorting the truth by claiming that the brutal killing was unintentional.

However, studying the Israeli soldiers’ records in the past years proves two things: One is that this was certainly not an incident, and it was downright intentional. And two, killing journalists, paramedics, and kids by the Israeli snipers is a systemic trend. 

Let’s go back to July 8, 2018.

In a debate hosted by Al Jazeera in Oxford University, Mehdi Hasan - a prominent and prolific British-American political journalist and broadcaster - challenged Danny Ayalon, former Deputy Foreign Minister and a former Knesset member on the Israeli soldiers who target journalists, paramedics, and even children.

“On May 14 of this year (2018), the Israeli government celebrated the 70th year of its independence at the opening of the new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem. I believe you were there as well at that event, while over in Gaza on that same day, Israeli army snipers killed 62 Palestinians in cold blood. Gunned them down in full view of the world’s television and cameras. How do you justify? Can you justify the killing of unarmed Palestinian protesters, journalists, paramedics, kids?” Hasan asked Ayalon. His response was shocking.

“Well Mehdi, no one can justify killing of the innocent people, but I am not sure this was the case!” Ayalon said, adding that they “were pushed by their leaders of the Hamas -who by the way want to destroy the state of Israel- they were using them as human shields. Some of them were behind them with bombs…! By the way, the next day, Hamas confessed that out of these 62 people, 50 were active Hamas members. Others, we call it “collateral damage! We have to look at who is responsible for the killings, and the only responsible is Hamas!” the former Israeli diplomat noted.

The attitude of Israeli diplomats and officials towards this “collateral damage” is self-explanatory. We kill, and we kill, only to find a Hamas member. Also, we shoot innocent people, but it’s Hamas’ fault.

An IDF report published on Friday confirms this attitude, as it claims that the targeting of the veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was unintentional, as the Israeli soldiers mistook her for a Palestinian Islamic Jihad member!

“Abu Akleh was killed during a shootout between the Israeli army forces and Palestinian terrorists in the Jenin refugee camp in a very complex operational situation. The wave of terrorism (as it claimed) requires further action on the ground to stop and thwart the attacks. 

On the other hand, the military establishment is interested in taking the necessary precautions to prevent a widespread confrontation on the coast and possibly in the Gaza Strip. An unpredictable event, such as the killing of Abu Akleh, can complicate the picture and provide the preparedness that terrorist organizations are likely to use in an effort to further escalate the situation on the ground.

After a preliminary investigation and analysis of the scene, the Israeli army believes that it is possible that Abu Akleh was killed unintentionally by the army forces without prior identification,” the report said. 

The report went on to claim that the aim of the operation was to arrest a wanted Islamic Jihad operative suspected of “terrorist activity.”
“According to the fighters, this is not their first operation in the refugee camp in recent times, the range of shooting at them has been very unusual even compared to previous operations,” it added. 

The report by the IDF went on to claim that the Israeli Army emphasizes that “the search for the truth in this incident is not an apology for the operational activity that will continue and does not mean that it does not support the forces that acted in the reality of professional operation!”

So, shooting journalists in the head is “professional operation” now!

The report concluded by saying that finally, with the continuation of what it called “terrorist attacks,” the issue of Hamas presence in Gaza will be raised again. At the same time, the calm in the Gaza Strip exacerbates the complex dilemma for Israel, “and Hamas uses the fruits of this distinction to eliminate conflict in the Gaza Strip, while crediting itself with leading the fight against Israel. The road further weakens the weakened position of the Palestinian Authority.” 

Apparently, the Israelis are now worried about the Palestinian Authority as well!

In the debate between Hasan and Ayalon, the former Israeli diplomat let a remarkable confession slip. He said, “Mehdi, I can look at any one here in the eyes (the audience present at Oxford Union) and say, Israel is doing its level best not to kill anyone who is not involved! 

Hasan asked, “What threat did Razan al-Najjar, 21-year old volunteer paramedic who was shot while wearing a white uniform in the chest a hundred meters away from the (Gaza) fence, what threat did she pose to the Israeli snipers?”

In response, Ayalon resorted to a familiar Israeli tactic, saying that she used the title of volunteer paramedic as a cover up. 

“Wait a minute. This is something I really looked into. She was having an incendiary bomb, and there is an investigation by the IDF. Why was she going into a war zone?”

Apparently, Ayalon lacks the very basic knowledge that a paramedic’s job is to cure and carry the wounded to field hospitals. 

Even Hasan lost his cool and reminded Ayalon that “no country shoots people in the back as they are running away!” He then reminded the former Israeli diplomat of another unarmed Gazan citizen, Yasser Murtaja, a Gazan video journalist and photographer, who was killed by Israeli security forces during the 2018 Gaza border protests.

“Yasser Murtaja, 30 years old, shot in the stomach by an Israeli sniper. He was 250 meters away from the fence. Why was he shot?”

Ayalon said he came with a “harm(ful) intention.” Hasan responded by saying that he was “not Hamas, he was a journalist, and you shot him in the stomach, your country shot him in the stomach, and you claim he had a hurtful intention. That’s outrageous!”

As you can see the change in the fake regime’s administration has not changed the attitude of the snipers, who keep shooting people, journalists and even children. Now we know that Israeli soldiers know palm-reading and can read the Palestinian people’s minds and realize they have hurtful intentions. 

On Wednesday night, Haaretz, an Israeli media outlet, claimed that the bullet that killed Abu Akleh was shot from an M-16 gun, which “could have been used by the Palestinian fighters.”

As long as the global community keeps silent on the Israeli atrocities, Israel will keep killing more and more journalists.