It has been a month since the assassination of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh. The overwhelming consensus at this point is that she was killed by a member of the Israeli Defense Forces. And not a day has gone by without me thinking about her killer and the system that allows such killings.
Because I live in the United States and don’t have access to Al Jazeera, I had never heard of Shireen Abu Akleh. The news came to me via text on WhatsApp by a young priest from Ramallah who wrote,
“Dear God my heart hurt so much….They intentionally killed Shireen….She was targeted. We are all targets. They killed her, but they did not shut her microphone of truth and justice.” What is asked of Palestinians today is: 1) to speak without fear, 2) expose the brutality of the Israeli occupation 3) show the daily theft of our precious land by the Israeli government. Shireen died but her microphone is still alive…the sadness is immense, but the hope for justice is greater.”
Since the priest’s message, I’ve devoured every word I can put my hands on to learn about Shireen Abu Akleh and her killer. I cried as I watched the attack on her funeral. I watched with pride as a young Palestinian man put himself in harms way to try to save her while bullets whirled around him. Her funeral and the procession brought sad memories and pride from my childhood and reminded me of the killing of my distant cousin who was burned alive by Israeli soldiers, and whose funeral Israel also tried to stop. Her assassination also reminded me of eye-witnessing the slaughter of a young Palestinian in Ramallah when I was eleven years old. The killing took place in the early stage of the Israeli occupation by an undercover Israeli Mossad agent. Abu Akleh’s killing revived the nightmares I experienced for years as a result of the brutalities and killing that I witnessed first hand.
It took years for me to stem the nightmares from my experience living under the Israeli occupation. I trained myself to forgive their misdeeds in order for me to sleep in peace. But with every killing, land theft, abuse, and blatant disregard for the humanity of the Palestinian people, I find myself at loss. I question what would it take to bring justice to the indigenous Palestinian population. I question the silence or the lackluster response from the so-called advocates of justice and peace. I question those who dismiss the intentional killing by using words like “clashes.” An initial New York Times headline stating simply that Abu Akleh had “died at 51” as if she had a heart attack. I question a calloused world that continues to give Israel a pass despite mounting evidence of abuse over the years.
The practice of this double-standard is not new or shocking, it is just infuriating. It shows that leaders of the Western world feel that people of Middle Eastern descent, especially Palestinians, are children of a lesser God. Although I continue to question I already know the usual canned answers and words use to deflect the criticism — words such as “it is complicated,”“ no conclusive evidence,” and “the IDF disputes the findings.” And on and on.
With all this, I still want to understand, how anyone with moral standards can cheapen a human life and continue to live a normal life? I want answers from the person who pulled the trigger. I want to understand his/her psyche. I want to know his/her feelings before, during, and after the killing took place. I want to know if the killer is affected by his/her action. I want to know if his/her superiors ordered them to shoot. Do they hold themselves responsible for the misery of others or do they think that they are the heroes of their people?
I am posing these questions so that I can understand what will make a person pull a trigger.
So here are my questions to the Israeli soldier who pulled the trigger that killed Shireen:
Were you born in Palestine/ Israel and if not, where did you come from?
Did you come to Israel as a child, or as an adult, because you were taught that Israel is your promised homeland?
What was your dream as a child? Did you dream of being a super hero like most children? And are your super heroes soldiers with guns?
Were you taught to hate and fear the Palestinian people? If yes, by whom?
Was your family kind to strangers, or were they militants who viewed themselves as the “chosen people?”
If you had a Bar/Bat Mitzvah did you promise to do the right thing as practiced by many young Jews celebrating their entry into adulthood?
What was the right thing that you promised?
What made you happy as a child, teenager, and adult?
Are you religious or secular? Does your ethic adhere to the “Thou shalt not kill” commandment?
As a student in high school did you have Palestinian classmates? If yes, did you interact with them?
As you learned about the history of your country, did you learn about the indigenous people who lived in this land for millenniums? Or, do you believe in the fallacy of “a land without a people for a people without a land?”
Did you ever see a Palestinian when you are not in uniform? If yes, how was your encounter? What was that experience?
Since military service is mandatory in Israel, did you volunteer to serve in the West Bank or just followed your orders without a question?
During the mandatory military training, did they train you to fear all Palestinians, including children and the press?
The morning you killed Shireen, were you looking forward to your assignment? Or were apprehensive about the mission?
Did you drink coffee or another beverages with your breakfast? If yes, did you enjoy it or gulp the drink because you rolled out of bed late?
Did you volunteer for your assignment or did you just follow orders from your superiors?
Did you know, based on international law, that you were trespassing on Palestinians’ territory?
Did you have time to watch TV or read a newspaper that day? What did you watch or read the news before you left for your assignment?
Did you kiss your loved ones goodbye, or had a fight with your loved ones before you left?
Did you know anything about Jenin and the people who live there?
What was the atmosphere as you illegally entered someone else’s land with tanks and guns?
Did you harass people who were going on with their daily lives?
Did you pick on one or two children and made them as your human shield as the usual practice?
How nervous were you?
When you setup your gun, did you have a target in mind?
When you pulled the trigger were you serene, nervous, or nonchalant?
Did you watch your targets as they fell face down?
Did you hear and understand the distress of other the journalists who saw you kill and injure their beloved colleagues and friends?
Were you somber or did you high-five your platoon mates? What were their moods?
Did you ever wonder, why is it with all the weapons, tanks, and guns that you are fearful, yet the people you point your guns at are fearless?
Did you ever wonder whether your lack of safety is tied to the oppression that you carry out against them?
Do you imagine the pain that you have inflicted and caused to many families?
Who ordered you to shoot?
What circumstances do you need to justify the killing of unarmed journalists and civilians?
Is this your first live shooting, or did you participate in other shooting?
What did you tell your family when you got home?
Did you get a drink and discuss the shooting with your friends, or did you stay at home to reflect on the shooting?
Did you get an award for your accuracy in reaching the target?
Since you were so close to the journalist, did you see her vest with the big letters “PRESS” written on it? If not, were you distracted?
If you were given the order to shoot, did you pause for a minute and think about the harm that you may cause? Or you were eager to show your marksmanship?
Do you think that killing unarmed civilians is your patriotic duty, and that you are morally right in order to save your country?
When you pulled the trigger, did you know that Shireen has a dog who adores her and was waiting for her to come home?
Did you know that Shireen has a small family and tons of friends?
Did you watch her funeral?
Or like most of Israelis, did you ignore the suffering of the people you tortured and went on with your life?
A month after the killing, do you have any regrets?
Do you believe all humans have the same value?
I have so many other questions, but I will stop for now.
Those with power over people often think that their guns and bullets provide them further dominance. The bullet that pierced Shireen united a population who is fed up with oppression, colonialism, and humiliation. The soldier’s bullet awakened a world who was afraid to stand up to Israel for fear of being labeled antisemitic. This shot seen around the world exposed the reality of a shameless, criminal army that achieves their temporary power by killing, maiming, stealing, and imprisoning indigenous people who demand to be free. The bullet that pierced Shireen’s head gave the Palestinian people the ammunition to fight injustice and expose Israel for what it is: an apartheid state that believes in a Zionist supremacy.
The soldier who pulled the trigger is a product of a state who decided that their country has no room for the indigenous people, and seemingly has an ultimate plan for Palestinian genocide. The strange irony is that this solder’s gun, marksmanship, and bullets exposed their state’s criminality.
Shireen’s voice and microphone amplified the voices of courageous people who want to be liberated. Rest In Peace Shireen, you gave birth to a new era of courage.
The death of Shireen started a movement and there is no going back!
Great Post Terry. I always ask people the same question “What do you tell your family at night, during dinner”? How does the conversation go?
What I’d like to know: Who gave the order? How high up in the government?
And: Were you never told NOT to kill civilians who pose no danger to you?
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https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/2022-06-14/ty-article/.premium/two-iranian-scientists-died-by-israeli-poison-nyt-report-suggests/00000181-5eb4-dde4-a187-febf97370000
“Israel Poisoned Two Iranian Scientists, NYT Report Suggests”
“The allegations placing Israel behind the two scientists’ deaths come as tensions remain high over Iran’s tattered nuclear deal with world powers” Haaretz. Jun. 14, 2022 – “Two Iranian scientists who suddenly fell ill & died early this month are now believed to have been poisoned by Israel, an Iranian official told the New York Times in a report released Monday.
“The report follows the death of another Iranian government scientist on Monday, the latest in a spate of mysterious deaths of military employees in the Islamic Republic, many of whom specialized in ballistic missile technology.
“Ayoub Entezari was an aeronautical engineer employed at a military research center, & Kamran Aghamolaei was a geologist. Both men fell ill in late May under bizarre circumstances, growing increasingly sick before their deaths in June.
“The allegations placing Israel behind Entezari & Aghamolaei’s deaths come as tensions remain high over Iran’s tattered nuclear deal with world powers, coinciding with a series of deaths in Iran linked to Israel that have shaken the country in the last two weeks alone.
“‘[Iran’s] red line is the security of its citizens,’ said an Iranian government spokesperson in an interview with the Iranian news agency Tasnim. ‘It will take whatever retaliatory measure which is needed as countermeasure against any external act’ by Israel.
“Last week, a top Iranian military commander warned that ‘for any mistakes made by the enemy, we will raze Tel Aviv and Haifa to the ground.’ (cont’d)
One can easily see why Israel has no place being involved directly in any investigation by it’s handling of the investigatio of the barbaric savage attack on her funeral by the thuggish Israeli forces.
Investigation complete but we aren’t telling you anything. Such cowards and moral failures.
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“Recent mysterious deaths of Iranian scientists, Revolutionary Guard members”:
June 12 – A member of the Revolutionary Guards’ Aerospace Force, Ali Kamani, reportedly died in a car accident while on a mission
June 4 – A senior Iranian engineer, Ayoob Entezari, was reported dead under unclear circumstances. Later, a few reports claimed he had been intentionally poisoned
June 3 – A colonel in the Revolutionary Guard’s elite Quds Force, Ali Esmailzadeh, died during an ‘incident in his residence,’ Iran reported
May 26 An Iranian engineer, Ehsun Ghadbeigi, was reportedly killed in a drone attack on a military base near Tehran
May 22 A senior member of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard’s Quds Force, Col. Hassan Sayyad Khodaei, was assassinated by two motorcyclists in Tehran, according to Iranian state media.
“Muhammad Abdul, who died Monday, was in his 30s and had worked at the Semnan Space Center, home to the Iranian Space Agency’s satellite launch site and ballistic missile testing that hosted the country’s first launch of a military satellite into space. Just one day earlier, Revolutionary Guards aerosapce expert Ali Kamani died in a car accident while on a mission Iranian space agency member killed on duty, report says
“While authorities offered no suggestion of foul play in the men’s deaths, Israel has been accused of killing other high-ranking Guard members in what has amounted to an intensifying clandestine war revolving around Iran’s nuclear aspirations.”