Israeli soldiers use the photo of the American-Palestinian journalist murdered Shireen Abu Akleh for target practice.
This is one of the revelations of the new documentary Zeteo “Who Killed Shireen”. The film exhibits details not previously reported on the murder of the famous journalist from Al Jazeera by an Israeli elite shooter in Jenin on May 11, 2022, including the identity of the sniper who murdered Abu Akleh. It also reveals how the Biden administration knew from the start, via an Israeli general, that it was an Israeli soldier who shot him, but they acted as if they knew nothing and made classified investigations so as to mask history.
But beyond the surprising details and identities, I always come back to the fact that these soldiers used his photo for target practice. It is almost impossible to roll up around him.
The explanation seems to be as follows: the murderer of Abu Akleh, Alon Scagio, was moved from the Duvdevan elite unit following his murder in a higher position in another unit, which distant him from any investigation. His comrades in the Duvdevan unit considered this insult for which they would take figurative “revenge” on Abu Akleh by pulling on his face for a target practice. This is based on the testimony of Scagio’s friend of the Duvdevan unit.
So let’s just try to unpack and understand this. Abu Akleh’s murderer was in fact protected from any responsibility. He was not tried and he was not demoted, he was simply transferred to a commanding position in another unit, precisely to protect him from a legal examination. And yet, this slight consequence was sufficient to take revenge on the memory of the murdered journalist.
The reality behind this state of mind is quite obvious – Israeli soldiers are simply not used to being held responsible at all.
This recalls the drama around Elor Azarya, the Israeli military doctor who assassinated an incapable Palestinian suspect with a rush stroke drawn in 2016. The discussion at the time in Israeli society was mainly talking about him. Because, as his comrades have testified, such executions occur “tons of times”, but it is rare that they are taken in front of the camera. And so Azarya was considered a scapegoat, which is why he was considered a hero and a martyr for many Israelis, and even as his already privileged prison sentence was reduced to only nine months.
The murder of Shireen Abu Akleh has become an international story and a scandal not only because it was filmed, but also because she was a famous journalist and an American. But the facts on his murder also give a context and an explanation to targeting hundreds of Palestinian journalists who were murdered by Israel during the Gaza genocide. The targeting of journalists is one of the most flagrant war crimes possible, but the crimes that are not prosecuted are no longer crimes with regard to the aggressor.
Palestinian journalists are considered enemies by Israeli soldiers because they are one of the few actors who can lead even to a minimum of responsibility, as minimal as these consequences are. And so they become a target.
The act of using the photo of Shireen Abu Akleh as a target practice manifests the state of mind that these journalists are a fair game.
And the more they end up causing – even in their death – the more they hate, the greater the feeling of revenge, and the more the danger for their colleagues, which shares the same vests and boring press headsets.
It really happens, and it continues to happen because it is not stopped. The case of Akleh Abu Akleh also shows us that it was the case before October 7, 2023, and that has nothing to do with Hamas.
