The UN Security Council unanimously condemned the killing of Palestinian-American Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh while covering an Israeli army raid in the occupied West Bank, diplomats said.
The security council called for an immediate, thorough, transparent and impartial investigation into her killing According to diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity, the negotiations on the text were particularly arduous.
China pushed the US to remove paragraphs denouncing abuses committed against the media around the world, defending their freedom and urging their protection while covering military operations, according to diplomatic sources and different versions of the declaration obtained by AFP during the discussions.
The US said earlier that it was deeply troubled by the images of Israeli police intruding into her funeral procession. Antony Blinken, secretary of state, said: Every family deserves to be able to lay their loved ones in a dignified and unimpeded manner. The EU said it was appalled by the violence in the St Joseph hospital compound and the level of unnecessary force exercised by Israeli police throughout the funeral procession. UN secretary-general Ant nio Guterres was also deeply disturbed by the violence, according to a spokesman.
Television footage showed pallbearers trying to stop Abu Akleh's coffin from falling to the ground as Israeli police officers charged at them, grabbing Palestinian flags from mourners.
Abu Akleh, a star journalist for Al Jazeera, was killed when she covered unrest in the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank.
The Qatar-based network claimed she was deliberately targeted by Israel.
The Israeli prime minister, Naftali Bennett, initially said armed Palestinians were likely responsible, but Israel has since rowed back and said it was investigating.