As If a Friend Has Been Killed

By: Enjy Akram

I could still hear her sign-off: “Shireen AbuAqleh, Al Jazeera, Al Quds.”

I grew up watching AbuAqleh’s reports from Occupied Palestine. For more than 20 years, she braved tear gas, rubber bullets, and live fire to shed light on the brutality of the occupation. Her reporting was not only brave, but stood in contrast to the pro-occupation bias we see in much of Western media.

On May ii, 2022, I could hear her sign-off ring in my ears as I read news of her assassination by occupation soldiers in Jenin.

She took her last breath while wearing a blue bulletproof vest with PRESS clearly marked, which should alert Israelis and Palestinians that she was a non-combatant.

The details of her murder are disturbing: AbuAqleh was shot in the face, indicating precision to avoid hitting her vest, and therefore a willful intent to end her life.

It’s clear to those who were there and were also wounded that AbuAqleh was targeted for termination.

AbuAqleh’s presence as a journalist in Palestine was critical because it defied and challenged the deception and media manipulation of the occupation. The occupation’s narrative is a false narrative, and her role was to report the truth to a world audience.

Who would have imagined that the bright and young journalist who covered the Second Intifada in 2000 could be killed in a heart-wrenching deja vu?

She was both a witness and a martyr to the occupation, proving that the pen is mightier than the sword.

I am saddened and angered by her barbaric murder; and yet, I am in awe of and inspired by the path she has paved for thousands of Arab women journalists, like myself.

It is because of her dedication and selfless pursuit to report the truth that I feel proud to be a journalist.

The Caravan extends its deepest condolences to AbuAqleh’s family and friends, and to her co-workers at Al Jazeera. May this be the last journalist to pay the ultimate price for reporting the truth.