From the first moment, Israel had no chance in the Sheerin Abu Akala affair. Two months after she was killed in Jenin, this affair was finally signed this week in an official statement from the United States government. Although the Palestinians have sharply criticized the conclusions, they should be pleased. Within the limitations of the event, of course.
From the moment of her tragic death on the morning of May 11 until Sunday, when the State Department published its conclusions, the Palestinian side succeeded in all the goals it set for itself: to incriminate Israel, build the image of Abu Akla as a national female model and show everyone the realities of life in the PA. It was a rare moment when the eyes of the global media focused on the story, and the PA took full advantage of it.
As reported last weekend, the Americans asked for and received from the PA the bullet that killed the journalist. The test was performed in Israel in the presence of Israeli experts. It not only examined the bullet itself, but also included a field investigation of firing directions and the conduct of the forces. At the end, the Americans rejected the Palestinian position that Abu Akala was deliberately shot by the IDF, and in fact executed.
Disorder at a press funeral to Jazeera Sheerin Abu Aqla, police spokeswomanThe bullet was said to have been damaged to such an extent that it does not allow it to be associated with the weapon from which it was fired. The main point was hidden in one sentence in the report. “It is likely that fire fired from IDF positions is responsible for the death of Abu Akla,” it said.
The U.S. report joins investigations conducted by the New York Times, The Washington Post and CNN. The three determined that the IDF fired the fire that killed it. Al-Jazeera’s investigation, which brought live witnesses to its presence, also held Israel responsible. The world’s major media outlets aligned themselves with the conclusion. If implied.
The authority announced in response that it expects from Washington an explicit indictment of Israel, and since this was done hesitantly, it intends to go with the story to the International Criminal Court. But the Palestinians do not really need the Hague. They won this story from the beginning, and courtesy of the Jerusalem Police, after which their victory was even increased. Victory of the poor, of course. Not only did they defeat Israel, but also Hamas, which is leading the public campaigns in the Palestinian camp, which even tried for a moment to ride on the affair.
Sheerin Abu Akala was a model for the Palestinian woman during her lifetime. A compassionate journalist dedicated to her mission, who spent 25 years working in al-Jazeera making the voices of the weak heard, and here the Israelis, ostensibly, came and silenced her. Palestinians have myths, but not of the kind that enjoys such broad consensus, certainly not of the female sex.
Abu Akala’s story is made of perfect materials of myth-building, and it is no wonder that it has become an almost admirable model. Myths, as is well known, are the greatest enemy of facts. Therefore this story is subscribed and finished. Even if a Palestinian comes now or in the future, and proves by signs and examples that he accidentally shot and killed her, nothing will undermine the intensity of sympathy for her on the Palestinian street and in Arab states. Not even a new ballistic test or an American investigation, whatever that may be.
But that is not why Israel lost from the first moment. She has been defeated in this campaign because there is no proper way to deal with reality when you control another people. This situation requires the controlled to resist by force, and resistance inevitably breeds disasters. from both sides. The best explanatory will not be able to convincingly justify Israeli control over others.
The funeral of journalist Sheerin Abu Akala (Photo: Jamal Awad, Flash 90)The authority stormed the affair from the first minute, not because its information system is better. She stormed in because this story contained everything she had been trying to do for years. Show reality and its implications for everyday life. Israel has argued, and rightly so, that terrorists are working against it, and that it has a right and even a duty to thwart their plots. The problem is that when the world sees you as an exile, few will believe when you shout that your name is David.
Towards hummus in Riyadh
Compared to the frozen Palestinian channel, things are lively on the Ramallah bypass route. Two military commentators, Yoav Limor (“Israel Today”) and Alon Ben David (Channel 13), landed in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, and were allowed to walk freely in its streets. As was the custom of the foreign visitor, they entered the mosque, visited markets, sat in restaurants and chatted with passers-by. Their visit is coordinated by security officials on both sides, and is intended to send a political message. This is how the Saudis signal to their public, Americans and neighbors, that Israelis are welcome in their capital.
Washington was an undercover accomplice to the two’s visit, and it is no coincidence that it was carried out in preparation for the US President’s visit to the region. Biden will land here next week, and from Jerusalem will continue to Saudi Arabia. When he arrives, he will not be in a hurry to demand normalization from his hosts with Israel. It carries important goals for its country’s international foreign and trade relations. For example, increase the rate of oil production, to reduce its price, which has risen since the war in Ukraine. On top of that, Biden will aspire to reconcile with the regent, Muhammad bin Salman, who is furious at the closeness of his rival Qatar to the heart of Washington. Jerusalem and its relations with Riyadh will, therefore, be in a modest place on its list.
Muhammad bin Salman (Photo: Reuters)Therefore, and also because of Saudi Arabia’s reservations, it would be surprising if his visit would give rise to a sensational agreement to establish relations with Israel. For Saudi Arabia, as the guardian of the holy places, it is difficult to thaw its relations with us in one day, as long as the Palestinian problem is not resolved and al-Aqsa is under Israeli control. But they need Israel as a key partner in the long-standing efforts to curb Iran and religious extremism. They therefore chose to do so differently from their brothers, the UAE and Bahrain. Through gradual heating of contacts through careful gestures and agreements.
This is not the first time that journalists have been used by government officials to demonstrate goodwill between the parties or to promote a diplomatic goal. During peace talks with Syria in the mid-1990s, Israel suggested that Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk al-Shara be interviewed by the Israeli media. The Syrians agreed, and a first-of-its-kind interview with him was broadcast on Channel 1. Over the years, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has taken advantage of his relationship with the Israeli media to convey messages of leadership to Jerusalem in the eyes of the Israeli public. On the eve of the Abrahamic Accords, the Americans bothered to push senior whistleblowers and statements to speak to the Israeli media.
What is interesting about the two’s visit to Riyadh is the relative indifference of the Israeli media. In the past, an Israeli journalist who landed exclusively in an Arab capital with whom he had no overt relationship was immediately called in to be interviewed by a number of leading media outlets. Limor and Ben-David’s visit was wiped out by the daily flow of news, although the flow of news did not include particularly dramatic events this week. And this is not a remote Arab country. Saudi Arabia is the most important in the Arab countries, setting the tone in every important move in the Arab and regional space.
Good and evil can be found in this indifference. Bad, because it best expresses how we have become dull to exciting events. No shades, everything is the same. A pioneering visit by senior journalists to Saudi Arabia will be received with almost the same excitement as a well-publicized quarrel at the Big Brother house. And there is also good in it, because we have become accustomed to it. Upgrading relations with an Arab country in the Gulf, or at least hot signals from it, are no longer an event that must be erected in a tense standstill and the flags made for it. It is perceived here as a daily routine.
The author is the commentator on Arab affairs of Gali Tzahal