Why is the murder of a Palestinian-American journalist in the occupied West Bank just as important today as it was three years ago? And what does justice look like when the world’s most powerful government is adamant on siding with the killer? Two months ago, Zeteo released its acclaimed documentary ‘Who Killed Shireen?’ that dives into those questions. Two months later, we bring you a panel discussion that dives even deeper.
At a screening hosted by Washington DC’s famed National Press Club, Mehdi takes part in a panel that explores Israel’s crimes before the October 7 attack of 2023. He is joined by Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist Dion Nissenbaum (the lead investigator in the film), Americas Bureau Chief of Al Jazeera Abderrahim Foukara, and Jihan Abdalla, Senior US Correspondent for the National, who extensively reported from Israel/Palestine and is a Palestinian Christian who also knew the late Shireen Abu Akleh personally.
“The line that bothers me in this film the most, more than anything any Israeli says, is when Eyal Hulata, the national security advisor, and Dion are sitting in DC… He says, Joe Biden never raised this issue with [Israeli] Prime Minister Bennett… They killed an American journalist, and he did nothing,” says Mehdi.
The blame for Shireen’s killing extends beyond Alon Scagio, the soldier who shot her, as one panelist points out. “It's not just the soldier who fired the shot. It's the whole ecosystem,” says Foukara, who worked with Shireen in the Occupied Palestinian territories. The panel discusses some important aspects of Shireen’s death: how it was handled in Israel, how it was handled in the US, the specifics of the cover-up, and Dion even hints that although Zeteo’s film uncovered the killer, the story is not over just yet.
“This is a story that's unfolding. The US official in that film, we believe, is prepared to come forward and tell us more with his name attached, which will be a courageous act,” Dion tells the audience.
Watch the full panel above to hear Mehdi recount what his expectations were at the start of filming the documentary, what Shireen was like and how she was admired, from journalists who worked with her, and watch through to see a special message from a prominent US senator who was unable to attend.
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