JERUSALEM | Israeli police announced on Thursday that they had closed an internal investigation into their intervention at the funeral of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in Jerusalem in May, a muscular attack that sparked an international outcry, but without revealing the content of their conclusions .
• Also read: Outcry after Israeli police charges at funeral of Shireen Abu Akleh
• Also read: Journalist Shireen Abu Akleh buried in Jerusalem, incident sparks outcry
Violence erupted on May 14 when the coffin of Shireen Abu Akleh, a reporter for Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera who had been killed days earlier while covering an Israeli raid in the northern occupied West Bank, was released from hospital. The coffin almost fell over after Israeli police batons hit Palestinian porters.
“The results of the investigation into the attitude of the police during the funeral of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh have been submitted to the police commander,” the police said in a statement on Thursday, without disclosing those conclusions.
“The police, under my direction, have conducted investigations to assess the actions of their forces on the ground in order to draw conclusions and improve operational behavior in these types of incidents,” police commander Kobi Shabtai said, according to the press release.
“We cannot remain indifferent to these harsh images and we must investigate so that sensitive events of this order are not violently disrupted by rioters,” he added without further detail.
Thousands of Palestinians had attended the funeral of Al Jazeera’s star journalist in East Jerusalem, the Palestinian sector of the Israeli-occupied and annexed holy city.
His brother, Anton Abu Akleh, told AFP on Thursday that “no matter what Israel says or does, the photos speak volumes enough.”
“Police have attacked the pallbearers and they are trying to hide their actions and their mistakes,” added Mr Abu Akleh, accusing Israel of being “behind the killing” of his sister.
The Palestinian Authority, Al Jazeera and Qatar accused the Israeli army of killing the journalist.
After Israel initially claimed that the reporter – who was wearing a bulletproof vest labeled “Press” and a hard hat when she was shot – “probably” died from Palestinian gunfire, Israel said it did not rule out the possibility could be a shot by Israeli soldiers.
The Palestinian prosecutor concluded that the journalist had been shot dead by an Israeli soldier.