Family and friends carry the coffin of Al Jazeera reporter Shirin Abu Akleh, who was killed in an Israeli attack on Jenin in the occupied West Bank after clashes broke out with Israeli security forces during her funeral in Jerusalem on May 13, 2022. Mr. REUTERS / Amar Awad
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JERUSALEM, May 18 (Reuters) – Israeli police have arrested one of the Palestinian gravediggers, beaten by officials at the funeral of slain Al Jazeera journalist Shirin Abu Akleh, the detainee’s lawyer said on Wednesday.
A police spokesman confirmed the arrest of Amro Abu Khdair, but said it was not related to Friday’s funeral. He declined to give a reason for the man’s arrest.
Images of Israeli officers with batons beating the bearers, who at one point nearly dropped Abu Akleh’s coffin, sparked widespread international condemnation and anger over the killing of a reporter during an Israeli military attack in the occupied West Bank on May 11. Read more
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Abu Hdair’s lawyer, Khaldun Nijm, said his client was arrested on Monday, but the allegations were not disclosed and were based on information from Israel’s internal security service. He said Abu Hdair later told him he had been questioned about the funeral.
A police spokesman said any connection to the funeral would be a “cheap conspiracy”. Abu Hdair’s detention has been extended until Sunday, police and a lawyer said.
A second grave, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters that he had been questioned by police but had not been arrested.
Israeli Interior Minister Omer Barlev said on Saturday that he and the police commissioner had appointed a commission to conduct a “comprehensive investigation into what happened during the funeral to learn lessons from the event”.
Separately, Israel is investigating the death of Abu Aqlé. Palestinians are also investigating her murder.
Palestinians accuse Israeli forces of killing her. Israel has denied targeting it, saying it may have been accidentally shot by a soldier or a Palestinian gunman while exchanging fire in the West Bank city of Jenin.
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Additional reports by Maayan Lubell; Edited by Crispian Ballmer and Tomasz Janowski
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