Somehow the Flowers were Silent
Somehow the Flowers were Silent
I nDíl Chuimhne / Lest we Forget
Shireen Abu Akleh,
correspondent for Al Jazeera Arabic
assassinated on May 11, 2022, Jenin Camp,
in the Occupied West Bank.
Somehow even the flowers
fell silent, silenced
in their purple solitude
on the noisy crackling laneway
between life and death.
Everywhere now, it seems,
there are soldiers in their bunkers taking aim.
Everywhere now it seems to rain cold killers
in their catastrophes
complaining of the dead.
“Well”, they might say, “too loud-mouthed,
too light-hearted, too dark-skinned, too many, too-militant, too much joy,
too much justice, too many tales to tell...”
O, who knows what these gunmen said
to the silent flowers that sad day
waving their soft purple petals like flags
over the news of the dying.
That cold dark day at the gates to Jenin.
Somehow, all this time later,
in this time of war, i imagine
this last protest
after all the lies have regurgitated
their last meal
after these dumb politicians have swallowed
their own speeches (in shame)
after all the dead have gone silently
to their rest…
when even the cruel bullets will bite their
own bloody tongues
i imagine then the small flowers
fade,
at nightfall,
when the cameras
have left,
fade, fade softly and silently
in their grief
to wander this planet
in search of hope.
séamas carraher – 19 october 2023
ph by Al Jazeera Media Network, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Image (Shireen Abu Akleh)
Al Jazeera Media Network, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Image (IDF SOLDIERS)
“IDF OPERATION “DEFENCE SHIELD” FOR ELIMINATION OF TERROR IN THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY. IN PHOTO, IDF SOLDIERS OPERATING IN JENIN REFUGEE CAMP.”
Public Domain – IDF content and released to Public domain by the Israeli Defence Forces Spokesperson’s Unit.
Notes
“They were shooting directly at the journalists’: New evidence suggests Shireen Abu Akleh was killed in targeted attack by Israeli forces” CNN, May 24/26, 2022, reporting on the death of Shireen Abu Akleh, journalist, killed by a gunshot to the head on the morning of May 11, 2022
Report (5 September 2023)
“The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and Israel “concluded on reasonable grounds that Israeli forces used lethal force without justification under international human rights law”, it said in a report released on Monday.”
Report of the Independent International Commission ofInquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel
Case of Shireen Abu Akleh (Sections 39-47)
- During law enforcement operations, lethal force is only permissible in self-defence or to protect the lives of others. In the case of Abu Akleh, the Commission concludes without doubt that Abu Akleh and the other journalists did not pose an imminent threat of death or serious injury to anyone and that there was no gunfire originating from Abu Akleh’s location or from near her. The Commission concludes on reasonable grounds that the Israeli security forces used lethal force without justification under international human rights law and intentionally or recklessly violated the right to life of Shireen Abu Akleh.
- In an occupation, the wilful killing of a protected person constitutes a grave breach of article 147 of the Fourth Geneva Convention and is a war crime. Abu Akleh and other journalists, who were clearly identifiable as journalists, were protected persons. Furthermore, under the doctrine of command responsibility, a military commander may be held criminally responsible for crimes committed by subordinates under his effective command and control, where the commander knew or should have known that the subordinates were committing crimes and he failed to prevent the commission of the crimes or to submit the matter to the competent
authorities for investigation and prosecution. (Rome Statute, art. 28 (a))
Links / Other Video
The Killing of Shireen Abu Akleh | Fault Lines Documentary
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXy9SUDqUHk (Al Jazeera / 2023)
Shireen Abu Akleh talks about her journey as a journalist | Middle East Eye
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHV-HZGPnqk
Israeli forces attack funeral of veteran journalist Shireen Abu Aqla | BBC News (2022)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y11CVGz7toM (BBC)
How Journalists Investigated the Killing of Shireen Abu Akleh
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOetzZZst-s
Israel releases report: Army admits Israeli gunfire likely killed journalist (September 2022)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWtQi5LeGDE – Al Jazeera
Image (“flowers in their purple solitude”)
from CNN Report, May 31, 2022
New evidence suggests Shireen Abu Akleh was shot dead in targeted attack by Israeli forces
Video of May 11, CNN, May 31, 2022
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