PBI-Canada remembers Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh on the third anniversary of her murder
Photo: Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was killed by the Israeli military on May 11, 2022. She was remembered at the June 1, 2022, protest against CANSEC.
Three years ago today, on May 11, 2022, Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was shot in the back of her head by an Israeli soldier.
Now, Dion Nissenbaum, the executive producer of Who Killed Shireen?, writes in The Guardian: “For much of the world, Shireen Abu Akleh was the voice of Palestine, a brave, seasoned Al Jazeera journalist who repeatedly put her life on the line to cover the Israeli occupation of the West Bank.”
“After falsely blaming Palestinian militants for killing Shireen, the Israeli military begrudgingly admitted – four months later – that one of their own soldiers almost certainly shot the 51-year-old journalist.”
Nissenbaum adds: “A key Biden administration official familiar with the examination told us that the soldier who had killed Shireen probably could have been convicted of murder in an American courtroom.”
Al Jazeera video: “Trigger warning: Sensitive material below. Shireen Abu Akleh’s colleagues at Al Jazeera’s bureau in the occupied West Bank express shock and grief after the news of her killing by Israeli occupation forces.”
The weapons that killed Shireen
On June 17, 2022, Al Jazeera published “an image of the bullet that killed Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh.”
That article notes: “The ballistic and forensic experts concluded that the green-tipped bullet was designed to pierce armour and is used in an M4 rifle, Al Jazeera said, noting that the round was extracted from her head. ’The bullet was analysed using 3D models and, according to experts, it was a 5.56mm calibre – the same used by Israeli forces. The round was designed and manufactured in the United States,’ experts said.”
Forensic Architecture has also reported: “We identified the bullet, with its distinctive green tip, as an M855 SS109 5.56 x 45mm armour-piercing bullet, the type of munition common to IOF marksmen.”
In May 2022, Palestine Action noted: “IMI Systems, an Elbit subsidiary, is Israel’s main provider of 5.56mm bullets. These are the same type of bullet used by Israeli occupation forces to murder Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh.”
On May 2, 2024, Guns.com reported: “Colt’s Manufacturing of West Hartford, Connecticut this week got the nod from the U.S. Army to supply carbines and suppressors to be sent to Israel. The $26,675,000 firm-fixed-price contract, announced by the Pentagon, is listed as being for Colt ‘M4A1 carbines, suppressors, and flash suppressors.’.”
That article further highlights: “The IDF has also used American-made M4 and older M16A1/A2 models for generations.”
Photo: “We remember Shireen #ShutDownElbit” banner at protest against the CANSEC arms show in Ottawa.
175 journalists killed since October 2023
Nissenbaum further notes: “Israel has killed more than 175 journalists since 7 October 2023, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. More journalists were killed in 2024 than in any other year since the committee began documenting such deaths more than three decades ago. Israel killed nearly two-thirds of the 124 journalists who died around the world in 2024.”
Shut Down CANSEC, May 28
Colt Canada Corporation and Elbit Systems Ltd. are members of the Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries (CADSI), the body that organizes the annual CANSEC weapons show.
Both Colt and Elbit exhibited at CANSEC in 2024.
@Shut.down.cansec on Instagram.
Further reading: PBI-Canada to observe the Shut Down CANSEC mobilization in Ottawa, May 28 (May 10, 2025).
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