How US dealt with the cases of nine Americans killed by Israel since 2022

Washington, DC – The household of Sayfollah Musallet, the United States national who was beaten to decease by Israeli settlers successful the occupied West Bank past week, is calling for justice.

Musallet’s relatives privation Washington to motorboat its own investigation into the incidental to guarantee accountability.

The Florida-born 20-year-old is the ninth US national to beryllium killed by Israeli settlers oregon soldiers since 2022. None of the erstwhile cases person led to transgression charges oregon US sanctions against the perpetrators.

That deficiency of effect is what advocates telephone a “pattern of impunity”, wherein Washington demands a probe without placing immoderate important unit connected Israel to nutrient results.

In Musallet’s case, the medication of President Donald Trump urged Israel to “aggressively” analyse the killing.

“There indispensable beryllium accountability for this transgression and violent act,” Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, said successful a connection connected Tuesday.

It is not wide if the US has taken immoderate further actions to question justness successful the aftermath of the fatal beating.

Critics accidental the “pattern of impunity” stems successful portion from the historically adjacent bonds betwixt the US and Israel. Successive statesmanlike administrations successful the US person affirmed their “unwavering” enactment for Israel, and the US provides Israel with billions of dollars successful subject assistance annually.

Here, Al Jazeera looks astatine who the 8 different victims were, however the US has responded to their sidesplitting and wherever their cases stand.

Omar Assad

Assad, a 78-year-old Palestinian American, was driving location successful the occupied West Bank aft visiting friends connected January 12, 2022, erstwhile Israeli soldiers stopped him astatine a checkpoint.

According to the autopsy study and his family’s account, the troops dragged Assad retired of his car and past handcuffed, gagged and blindfolded him, leaving him to dice astatine a acold operation site.

The medication of then-President Joe Biden called connected Israel to motorboat a transgression probe into the incident.

But Assad’s relatives and lawmakers from his location authorities of Milwaukee wanted Washington to behaviour its ain probe – a request that ne'er materialised.

As is often the case, Israel’s probe into its ain soldiers’ behaviour did not pb to immoderate transgression charges.

In 2023, the Israeli service said that it recovered nary “causal link” betwixt the mode its soldiers treated Assad and his death.

The Biden medication besides declined to use sanctions nether US instrumentality to the Israeli portion that killed Assad: the Netzah Yehuda, a battalion notorious for its abuses against Palestinians successful the West Bank.

Last year, the US Department of State announced that the battalion volition inactive beryllium eligible for US assistance nether the Leahy Law, which prohibits subject assistance for information units progressive successful quality rights violations.

Shireen Abu Akleh

Abu Akleh, a seasoned Al Jazeera reporter, was fatally shot by Israeli forces during a raid successful Jenin successful the occupied West Bank connected May 11, 2022.

Owing to her presumption arsenic 1 of the astir celebrated journalists successful the Middle East, her sidesplitting sparked planetary outrage from rights groups and property state advocates.

Despite the planetary attention, Israeli forces attacked her funeral successful Jerusalem, beating the pallbearers carrying her coffin with batons.

A representation of Al Jazeera writer Shireen Abu Akleh is displayed during a memorial wide held astatine a religion successful Beit Hanina successful occupied East Jerusalem [AFP]

Israel initially denied sidesplitting Abu Akleh, 51, falsely claiming that the newsman was changeable by equipped Palestinians.

Months later, aft multiple ocular investigations showed that Israeli soldiers targeted Abu Akleh, Israel acknowledged that its forces apt killed the reporter, dismissing the incidental arsenic an accident.

The Biden medication faced waves of pleas by legislators and rights groups to motorboat its ain investigation into the killing, but it resisted the calls, arguing that Israel is susceptible of investigating itself.

In November 2022, Israeli media reports claimed that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was investigating the shooting of Abu Akleh, but the US Department of Justice ne'er confirmed the probe.

More than 3 years aft Abu Akleh’s killing, her household and supporters accidental justness successful her lawsuit has not been served.

Tawfiq Ajaq

Born successful Louisiana, Ajaq was 17 erstwhile helium visited the occupied West Bank to spot his relatives past year.

On January 19, 2024, helium was driving a pick-up motortruck with his friends erstwhile Israelis sprayed the conveyance with bullets and killed him.

Mohammed Salameh, who witnessed and survived the attack, said the shooting was unprovoked.

While it is not wide which idiosyncratic changeable Ajaq, Israel said the incidental progressive “an off-duty instrumentality enforcement officer, a worker and a civilian” and was sparked by “rock-throwing activities” – a assertion that Salameh has denied.

The US State Department called for an “urgent probe to find the circumstance” of the incident.

But much than 19 months aft the shooting, Israel has not publically released immoderate findings oregon charged immoderate fishy successful the shooting.

“We consciousness abandoned by our government,” Ajaq’s uncle, Mohammad Abdeljabbar, told Al Jazeera past year.

Mohammad Khdour

Khdour was besides 17 erstwhile helium was killed nether astir identical circumstances to Ajaq conscionable weeks later.

According to his relative Malek Mansour, who witnessed the attack, an unidentified assailant opened occurrence astatine their car successful the occupied West Bank from a conveyance with an Israeli fig plate.

Mansour said the onslaught was unprovoked. Khdour died connected February 10, 2024.

The 2 had been eating cookies and taking selfies moments earlier the shooting.

Once again, Washington called for a probe.

“There needs to beryllium an investigation. We request to get the facts. And if appropriate, determination needs to beryllium accountability,” then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters astatine that time.

But advocates accidental that, portion usually Israel launches sham investigations into specified incidents, Israeli authorities person not acknowledged Khdour’s sidesplitting astatine all.

The Israeli subject and constabulary told the work Haaretz past twelvemonth that they are not acquainted with the case.

Jacob Flickinger

An Israeli aerial onslaught targeted a World Central Kitchen (WCK) conveyance successful Gaza connected April 1, 2024, sidesplitting 7 assistance workers, sparking choler and condemnation crossed the world.

Among the victims was Flickinger, a 33-year-old US-Canadian dual citizen.

Biden called for a “swift” Israeli probe into the attack, which helium said “must bring accountability”.

But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the blast a “tragic accident”.

A conveyance for the World Central Kitchen sits charred successful the cardinal Gaza Strip aft a deadly Israeli strike, connected April 2, 2024 [Ahmed Zakot/Reuters]

The Israeli subject said the commandant who ordered the onslaught had “mistakenly assumed” that gunmen successful the country were successful the assistance vehicle.

It added that the commandant did not place the car arsenic associated with World Central Kitchen, a well-known hunger alleviation inaugural founded by personage cook Jose Andres.

A World Central Kitchen logo was displayed prominently connected the apical of the conveyance earlier the attack.

Israel said it dismissed 2 commanders implicit the incident, but determination were nary transgression charges.

Since then, Israel has killed hundreds of assistance workers successful Gaza, including Palestinian staff members from World Central Kitchen.

Last year, the International Criminal Court issued an apprehension warrant for Netanyahu and his erstwhile Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for utilizing starvation arsenic a limb of warfare successful Gaza arsenic good arsenic different alleged warfare crimes.

Aysenur Ezgi Eygi

Eygi, calved successful Washington state, was participating successful a protestation against an amerciable settler outpost successful the West Bank connected September 6, 2024, erstwhile an Israeli worker changeable her successful the head.

She was 26.

While determination were reports of a scuffle during a crackdown connected the objection by Israeli forces, respective witnesses person said that Eygi was changeable during a calm play aft the chaos had ended.

The State Department called connected Israel to “quickly and robustly” analyse Eygi’s killing, but it ruled retired conducting its ain probe.

Biden dismissed her decease arsenic an “accident”, but Blinken condemned it arsenic “unprovoked and unjustified”.

On the aforesaid time that Eygi was fatally changeable by Israel, the US Justice Department ​filed charges against Hamas leaders aft the sidesplitting of US-Israeli captive Hersh Goldberg-Polin successful Gaza.

The Israeli subject said its soldiers apt killed Eygi “indirectly and unintentionally” – a decision that her household called offensive, stressing that she was targeted by a sniper.

“The disregard shown for quality beingness successful the enquiry is appalling,” the household said successful a statement.

Trump state Randy Fine, present a Congress member, celebrated the sidesplitting of Eygi. “One little #MuslimTerrorist,” helium wrote successful a societal media post, referring to the shooting.

Kamel Jawad

When Jawad, a celebrated person successful the Lebanese American community successful Michigan, was killed by an Israeli aerial onslaught successful southbound Lebanon connected October 1 of past year, the Biden medication initially denied helium was a US citizen.

Washington aboriginal acknowledged that Jawad was American, expressing “alarm” implicit his killing.

“As we person noted repeatedly, it is simply a motivation and strategical imperative that Israel instrumentality each feasible precautions to mitigate civilian harm. Any nonaccomplishment of civilian beingness is simply a tragedy,” the US State Department said astatine that time.

Israel has not commented publically connected the onslaught that killed Jawad.

The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) slammed the Biden administration’s handling of the case, including the US government’s archetypal “smug” response.

“It’s arsenic if they’re intentionally trying to spot our radical killed, intentionally downplaying america and dehumanising us,” ADC enforcement manager Abed Ayoub told Al Jazeera past year.

Amer Rabee

On April 6, Israeli forces successful the West Bank fatally changeable 14-year-old Rabee, a New Jersey native, and called him a “terrorist”. Two of his friends were besides injured successful the attack.

While the Israeli subject accused Rabee and his friends of throwing rocks astatine Israeli vehicles, the slain teenager’s household insisted that helium was picking almonds connected the broadside of the road.

The Trump medication failed to prosecute accountability successful the lawsuit oregon adjacent publically property for further details astir the incident.

Instead, the State Department cited the Israeli relationship astir the 14-year-old’s killing.

“We connection our sincerest condolences to the household connected their loss,” the State Department said astatine that time. “We admit the [Israeli military’s] archetypal connection that expressed that this incidental occurred during a counter-terrorism operation.”