Israeli military says soldier 'likely' accidentally killed Al Jazeera reporter

The Israel Defense Forces said that it appears impossible to definitively determine who fatally shot Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, but it appears "likely" that she was accidentally shot by an Israeli soldier during a raid in May.

The military prosecutor's office reviewed the findings but does not plan on opening a criminal investigation into the incident, meaning that no soldier will be punished.

Abu Akleh was killed during an operation in Jenin, a Palestinian city known as a terror hotspot, following weeks of attacks on Israelis.

"It is more likely that she was accidentally hit by IDF fire, which was fired at those identified as Palestinian militants," the Israeli military said, as translated, on Monday.

Israel stressed that when the incident occurred Palestinian terrorists were targeting Israeli soldiers with heavy, indiscriminate fire for nearly an hour.

The U.S. State Department welcomed Israel's review on Monday after finding in July that Abu Akleh was likely unintentionally killed by Israeli fire, but the bullet was too damaged to reach a final conclusion.