Eight Republican senators warned, in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray, not to conduct a politically charged investigation of the Israel Defense Forces.
Their letter references the May 2022 death of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was killed during a military operation led by the Israeli Defense Forces [IDF] against suspected Palestinian terrorists.
"Despite a thorough investigation, the IDF was unable to determine the source of gunfire which hit Abu Akleh," the office of Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said in a statement.
"The U.S. Department of State's Security Coordinator reviewed the IDF's investigation and did not contradict the IDF's assessment. The Federal Bureau of Investigation [FBI], under the direction of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), has since opened an investigation into Abu Akleh's death, in blatant disregard of previous Israeli efforts to investigate."
In the letter, the senators wrote: "Americans should rest assured that the United States will take all efforts to seek accountability for the wrongful deaths of American citizens abroad. We should also expect our military allies, like Israel, to conduct thorough and complete investigations into the deaths of American citizens on their soil. Given the results of multiple competent investigations regarding Abu Akleh, we are confident Israel has done its part, as an American ally, to determine the truth regarding the circumstance of her tragic death.
"In light of this, we are dismayed the DOJ and FBI are seeking to disregard Israeli sovereignty by inserting itself into an investigation which has concluded and which U.S. officials participated in… The investigation highlights DOJ and FBI's overreach and politicization of investigations."
The letter was spearheaded by Rubio and Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and was also signed by Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Rick Scott, R-Fla., Josh Hawley R-Mo., Mike Braun R-Ind., Tom Cotton, R-Ark., and James Lankford, R-Okla.
"This misguided investigation into the IDF, which the DOJ and FBI have no jurisdiction over, must be closed immediately before further harm comes to our bilateral relationship with Israel," they continued in the letter. "We will remain vigilant on this issue and will press the Department of State on the FBI Legal Attaché notification processes at our overseas missions regarding foreign policy coordination efforts and deconfliction."
In an article, originally appearing on All Israel News, Jerusalem officials confirmed in a mid-November report by Israel's Channel 14 news that the Justice Department informed Israel's Justice Ministry about the opening of an investigation.
According to The Times of Israel, "the U.S. decision represents an about-face after the Biden administration insisted for months that it would not be opening its own investigation, instead relying on probes conducted by the Israeli and Palestinian authorities."
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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