Family of Shireen Abu Akleh visits Pope Francis at Vatican
Date
10/28/2022 6:12:04 AM
(MENAFN) Pope Francis has visited the family of veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh at the Vatican, nearly six months after she was killed by Israeli troops while documenting an army operation in the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank.
The families were among a group of visitors who attended a general audience in Vatican City on Wednesday, a weekly event in which the pontiff welcomes pilgrims. Stefanie Dekker of Al Jazeera reported from Rome on the brief encounter.
“He put his hand on his chest, on his heart, as he passed and that was pretty much it for the moment,” Dekker stated, while highlighting that the family “had expected to have a bit more time with the pope”.
In memory of the deceased Palestinian American reporter, a memorial mass will be performed in the Basilica of Saint Mary in Cosmedin in Rome at 5 p.m. local time (15:00 GMT).
Abu Akleh, who had worked for Al Jazeera for 25 years and was well regarded as the "voice of Palestine," was shot in the head by Israeli soldiers on May 11 while wearing a flak jacket and helmet that plainly identified her as a member of the press.
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