Palestinian sources reported on Saturday that the Palestinian Authority has agreed to hand over to the United States the bullet that killed journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in May. The sources also indicated that American investigators are anticipated to travel to Ramallah.

According to the Palestinian Attorney General Akram al-Khateeb, who spoke with Haaretz about the matter, “We will not hand over the bullet to Israel, but we agreed that the Americans will check it.”

This decision was made just over a week before President Joe Biden’s scheduled trip to Israel and the West Bank.

The Palestinian Authority and the U.S. administration agreed to turn over the bullet to the United States, according to Palestinian officials quoted by Haaretz. Israel was not included in the deal.

Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle had been putting pressure on the Palestinians to help with the probe, and they were eager to break the logjam by exchanging evidence in advance of President Joe Biden’s visit.

Abu Akleh, an American who worked for Al Jazeera and was well-known in the Arab world, was killed when Israeli soldiers went into the Jenin refugee camp to catch wanted people. Massive gunfire from armed Palestinians was fired in retaliation toward the Israelis. Her passing received extensive coverage in the world press and led to scathing criticism of both Israeli policy in the territories and the IDF.

In addition to criticizing Israel, the Biden administration requested an explanation for the journalist’s killing.

The Palestinian Authority decided to launch its own investigation into Abu Akleh’s death after the Israeli military declined to do so. Attorney General al-Khateeb claimed that this demonstrated “that at the scene of the incident, armed Palestinians were not present, and that Israeli forces were the only ones present.”

In response, the IDF reaffirmed its offer for a joint investigation last month. According to a statement by the army’s spokesperson section, “Israel and the PA occasionally conduct joint probes and their refusal to do so now is a testament to their concerns.”

The military further stressed that Abu Akleh was not intentionally shot and it is unclear whether she was shot by Palestinian gunmen or Israeli troops.

Al Jazeera shared images of what it claimed to be the bullet that killed Abu Akleh last month. The bullet is a type used by the Israel Defense Forces that can go through armor. The station said it was fired from an M-4 rifle. It further stated that the bullet’s green-tipped fragmentation caused damage to Abu Akleh’s helmet.

Image Credit: Getty

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