Justice for Shireen: The Growing Demand for Accountability When as Americans Are Killed in the West Bank
By Robert McDonald, Senior Legislative Researcher, A New Policy
On May 11, 2022, American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was killed while reporting on an Israeli military raid in the occupied West Bank. Her colleague, journalist Ali Samudi, was also shot and wounded during the incident.
Nearly four years later, fundamental questions about her killing remain unanswered. H.R. 7281, the Justice for Shireen Act, introduced by Representative André Carson, seeks to address that gap by requiring the United States government to conduct a comprehensive investigation and publicly report its findings to Congress and the American people. The bill raises a straightforward question that should not be controversial: when an American citizen and journalist is killed by a foreign military, does the United States have a responsibility to determine what happened?
What the Justice for Shireen Act Would Do
H.R. 7281 requires the Director of the FBI and the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Attorney General, Director of National Intelligence, and Secretary of Defense, to submit a report to Congress within 30 days of enactment examining the death of Shireen Abu Akleh.
The report must identify:
Individuals or entities responsible for the killing;
Any actors who participated in or were complicit in the incident;
Whether U.S. defense materials, funding, or services were implicated;
Any relevant investigative reports, including those conducted by the U.S. Security Coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
The legislation requires that the report be unclassified and publicly released, ensuring that the findings are accessible not only to lawmakers but also to the public. At its core, the bill does not predetermine conclusions. It simply requires transparency and accountability regarding the death of an American citizen.
What Happened in Jenin
Shireen Abu Akleh was killed while covering an Israeli military raid in the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. Immediately after the shooting, Israeli officials blamed Palestinian gunfire. That explanation remained the official position for months. Four months later, Israeli authorities acknowledged a high probability that Israeli forces were responsible, though they claimed the shooting occurred amid armed Palestinian activity. Independent investigations raised serious doubts about that account.
American journalists and investigators found no evidence of armed Palestinians in the immediate vicinity of the journalists when the shots were fired. Further reporting, including a documentary investigation by Zeteo, identified an Israeli sniper from an elite unit as the likely shooter and highlighted contradictions in official Israeli explanations. Former U.S. officials involved in investigating the incident reported that Israeli authorities were uncooperative with American investigators, including denying access to Israeli soldiers who witnessed the shooting.
According to Colonel Steve Gabavics, former Chief of Staff for the Office of the U.S. Security Coordinator, Israeli authorities did not inform U.S. investigators that they may have known the identity of the shooter. The pattern of inconsistent explanations and limited cooperation has left key questions unresolved.
Not an Isolated Case
Since January 2022, nine American citizens, including Shireen, have been killed in the West Bank by Israeli forces or Israeli settlers. Following the killing of Nasrallah Abu Siyam, thirty-one senators have signed a letter calling on Secretary Rubio, Attorney General Bondi, and Ambassador Huckabee to investigate these killings.
The Nine Americans are:
Nasrallah Abu Siyam, a 19-year-old American born in Philadelphia, shot during an attack on Palestinian farmers by a group of masked settlers. (2026)
Sayfollah Musallet: a 20-year-old beaten to death by Israeli settlers. (2025)
Khamis Ayyada: a 40-year-old father of five and a former Chicago resident, died after inhaling tear gas fired by Israeli forces and smoke from vehicles burned by Israeli settlers. (2025)
Amer Mohammad Saada Rabee: 14-year-old boy born in New Jersey, shot 11 times. (2025)
Tawfic Abdel Jabbar: 17-year-old boy raised in New Orleans, shot while driving down a dirt road close to his village from Israeli fire. (2024)
Mohammad Khdour: 17-year-old boy born in Hollywood, Florida, shot in the head from a white Mitsubishi with an Israeli license plate. (2024)
Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26-year-old American citizen raised in Seattle, was shot in the head by an Israeli soldier. (2024)
Omar Assad, an elderly Palestinian-American, died of a stress-induced heart attack after being gagged, blindfolded, bound with his hands behind his back, and left on the ground in the cold. (2022)
Shireen Abu Akleh: 51-years-old and spent her childhood in New Jersesy, shot in the head during an Israeli raid in the West Bank wearing a journalist vest covering the raid.
Why Congressional Oversight Matters
The killing of an American citizen by a foreign military or by settlers operating under its protection falls squarely within the scope of congressional oversight. When the government of a foreign country declines to fully cooperate with investigations involving a U.S. national, the responsibility to establish the facts ultimately rests with the United States. Congress routinely demands answers when Americans are harmed abroad. That responsibility does not disappear because the incident involves a close partner or ally.
Without a transparent investigation, the message to American citizens working overseas, particularly journalists covering conflict zones, is deeply troubling. It suggests that accountability may depend on political convenience rather than the rule of law.
Protecting Journalists Protects Democracy
Journalists operate on the front lines of conflict and crisis, often providing the only independent information available to the public. Their work allows citizens to understand events that governments or armed actors might otherwise obscure. When journalists are killed and the circumstances are not investigated thoroughly, the consequences extend far beyond a single tragedy. It creates a chilling effect that discourages reporting in precisely the places where transparency matters most.
For American journalists, the expectation should be clear: if they are killed while doing their job, their government will pursue the truth about what happened.
Why This Bill Matters
H.R. 7281 does not impose sanctions, mandate prosecutions, or dictate diplomatic consequences. It requires something much simpler and more fundamental: a factual accounting of the death of an American citizen. Investigating the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh does not diminish the significance of the other Americans killed in the West Bank. It is the first step toward ending the pattern of impunity surrounding the deaths of American citizens there.
Seeking truth and accountability reflects core American values. The United States has long argued that rule of law, transparency, and press freedom are essential to democratic societies. When those principles are applied consistently, even when politically inconvenient, they strengthen America’s credibility abroad and reinforce the protections American citizens expect from their government.
When they are ignored, the opposite happens. The Justice for Shireen Act is an attempt by Congress to ensure that the killing of an American journalist does not fade into unresolved ambiguity.
Accountability begins with establishing the facts.
And in this case, Congress is asking for nothing more than the truth.
