Coffin carrying veteran journalist's body shown falling as Israeli police beat mourners with batons / Shireen Abu Aqleh: press freedom under attack

By Dilip -

There was unrest in Jerusalem Friday as thousands attended the burial of veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was shot dead two days earlier while reporting on a military raid in the West Bank city of Jenin. Mourners had marched from Jerusalem's Jaffa Gate to Mount Zion cemetery. They were met with violence at the St. Joseph hospital complex by Israeli police when they tried to carry Abu Akleh's coffin, which Al Jazeera footage showed being rocked and then falling out of the hands of some of the pallbearers, as Israeli police beat them with batons.

Shireen Abu Aqleh: press freedom under attack

Crowds walked behind as Abu Akleh's rose-covered coffin was carried by pallbearers and lain down to rest next to her parents' grave. Church bells echoed through the cemetery. The burial was taking place a day after a memorial procession that brought thousands to the West Bank city of Ramallah.

Mourners flocked to the city's streets on Friday and huddled in front of St. Joseph hospital in East Jerusalem, where Abu Akleh's body remained until the burial. Muslims performed Friday prayers and mourners chanted "walking, walking on foot," demanding that Abu Akleh's coffin be carried and transported on foot from the hospital to the Greek Catholic church, where a service will be held, and then to the burial site. Israeli police were lined outside the hospital, according to CNN reporters. Police roadblocks were set up around the hospital.

Mourners carried Abu Akleh's coffin out of the hospital, but were met with strong resistance from Israeli police who compelled them to transport the body by car. A flash bomb and tear gas were fired, according to CNN reporters…

https://edition.cnn.com/2022/05/13/business/abu-akleh-funeral-jerusalem-intl/index.html


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