An Israeli tank crew that killed a Reuters cameraman could not see he was a journalist, the military said.
In its first official remarks on the April 16 killing of a Palestinan cameraman working for the British news agency in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military said Wednesday that Fadel Shana, 23, had been too far away from the tank — about a mile — for the gunner to be able to notice his journalist’s insignia.
The incident took place hours after three Israeli soldiers were killed in a clash with Hamas gunmen in central Gaza, though Shana’s footage does not appear to show fighting at the time when he was hit by a tank shell.
Reuters urged the Israeli military to complete a formal investigation of the killing.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.