1- The motivation of the
Palestinians who took her coffin to carry it on their shoulders and by
foot was to avoid a funeral “as if a Christian woman died.”
2- Abu
Akleh’s family had wanted her body taken by hearse to the church for
the funeral, and not carried through the streets of Jerusalem.
3-
When the hearse arrived to take the coffin to the church, the
Palestinian mob that had gathered at the hospital prevented the car from
reaching the entrance and receiving Abu Akleh’s body. Instead, it was
the Palestinian mob that snatched the coffin and thereby disrupted the
funeral. Israeli Police prevented further disruption….
PMW has
examined the broadcasts on official PA TV and Al-Jazeera prior to and
during the funeral of Al-Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, which
confirms the Israeli version of the events that led to the violence. The
videos of Israeli Police hitting some of those who carried the coffin
on their shoulders were disseminated around the world to make it seem as
if Israeli Police were interfering with the funeral. In fact, it was
the exact opposite. It was a Palestinian mob that had hijacked the
funeral and Israeli Police who were forced to intervene and have the
funeral return to be held as the family planned.
The following are the details:
The
morning of the funeral, Shireen Abu Akleh’s brother, Anton Abu Akleh,
told Al-Jazeera that the family, who are Christians, wanted the coffin
to be taken by hearse at 2:00 p.m. from the hospital to the church (and
not carried on shoulders.)
Brother of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh Anton Abu Akleh:
“At
2:00 p.m., Allah willing, the body will set out from the French
Hospital on Highway 1 (i.e., by hearse) to the Jaffa Gate, to the Greek
Catholic Church next to the Jaffa Gate. There the burial prayer will be
held for her soul. Afterwards we will set out from the church by foot to
the [Mount] Zion Cemetery of the Greek Catholic Church.”
[YouTube channel of Al-Jazeera, May 13, 2022
The brother was asked about those who wish to carry the coffin on their shoulders:
“The
young people of Jerusalem want to hold a special funeral for Shireen
that will go [by foot] through the Old City. What do you think of this
as a family?”
Anton Abu Akleh rejected the idea in the interest of keeping order:
“The
situation, as you see, is that the Israeli restrictions are very
strict. We appreciate the love of the Palestinian public and the
Palestinian people. As for Shireen, we have held a number of funerals
for her. The Palestinians held [a funeral] for her from Jenin to Nablus,
to Ramallah, and now in Jerusalem we don’t want there to be
[confrontations]. In other words, the Israelis are lying in wait for us,
and Allah willing the funeral will go well.”
However, when the
church’s hearse approached the hospital to take the coffin, the
Palestinian mob at the hospital stopped the hearse, and prevented it
from approaching.
