Western media slammed for coverage of Shireen Abu Akleh?s killing

Media outlets ignored Israel’s role in Abu Akleh’s death, according to social media users and commentators.The killing of Al Jazeera’s Shireen Abu Akleh in the occupied West Bank has created an uproar as commentators and social media users criticise Western media outlets for “whitewashed” reporting that appeared to shy away from mentioning that Israeli forces had killed the seasoned reporter.Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American journalist who worked for Al Jazeera’s Arabic television channel, was hit by an Israeli live bullet on Wednesday morning, according to witnesses, as she covered an Israeli military raid in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin.The news shocked Palestinians, for whom Abu Akleh has been a constant presence on Al Jazeera for 25 years.But, despite showing respect for Abu Akleh’s career, many media organisations were careful to avoid implicating Israel in the killing, despite assertions by Al Jazeera and witnesses who were with her that Abu Akleh had been killed by Israeli forces.As Western media began reporting the story, social media users criticised organisations for, as one Twitter user says, their “unbelievable” coverage of the story.Beth Miller, the political director of Jewish Voice for Peace, slammed the New York Times for a headline that said Abu Akleh “dies at 51”, without mentioning the cause of her death.“Shireen Abu Akleh was shot and killed by an Israeli sniper while reporting on an Israeli military raid of a refugee camp,” she tweeted.“‘Dies at 51’.