Coffin carrying veteran journalist’s body proven falling as Israeli police beat mourners with batons

Mourners had marched from Jerusalem's Jaffa Gate to Mount Zion cemetery. They have been met with violence on the St. Joseph hospital complex by Israeli police when they tried to carry Abu Akleh's coffin, which Al Jazeera footage showed being rocked after which falling out of the hands of a number of the pallbearers, as Israeli police beat them with batons.

Crowds walked behind as Abu Akleh's rose-covered coffin was carried by pallbearers and lain down to relaxation next to her mother and father' grave. Church bells echoed by the cemetery.

The burial was going down a day after a memorial procession that introduced hundreds to the West Bank city of Ramallah.

Mourners flocked to the city's streets on Friday and huddled in entrance of St. Joseph hospital in East Jerusalem, the place Abu Akleh's physique remained till the burial. Muslims performed Friday prayers and mourners chanted "walking, strolling on foot," demanding that Abu Akleh's coffin be carried and transported on foot from the hospital to the Greek Catholic church, the place a service can be held, and then to the burial web site. Israeli police have been lined exterior the hospital, in line with CNN reporters. Police roadblocks had been arrange across the hospital.

Mourners carried Abu Akleh's coffin out of the hospital, however had been met with sturdy resistance from Israeli police who compelled them to transport the body by car. A flash bomb and tear fuel had been fired, in accordance with CNN reporters.

Al Jazeera live footage confirmed Israeli police beating mourners with batons as they struggled to hold Abu Akleh's coffin. The physique was in flip brought back inside the hospital and then transported by automotive, said Al Jazeera.

Footage on social media and Al Jazeera showed Abu Akleh's coffin being rocked backwards and forwards after which falling as Israeli police beat pallbearers with batons. It was not instantly clear if the coffin hit the bottom.

Israeli police in a press release mentioned that "hundreds of rioters started to disrupt public order, even earlier than the funeral began," as they labored to secure the procession.

"A whole bunch of people gathered outside the French hospital (St. Joseph hospital) in Sheikh Jarrah and commenced chanting nationalist incitement," added the statement.

"Towards the exit of the casket from the hospital, rioters began throwing stones toward the policemen from the French hospital plaza, and the policemen were pressured to behave."

Thousands have been packed inside and out of doors the church as Abu Akleh's body arrived. Ladies have been heard ululating in mourning and monks sang Christian hymns in Arabic because the coffin, draped in Palestinian flags, was carried by way of the gang.

The circumstances of her dying remain unclear. The Palestinian Authority on Thursday denied Israel's provide of a joint investigation, insisting on an unbiased process and vowing to try these accused of her killing to the International Prison Courtroom (ICC).

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohamed Shtayyeh informed Al Jazeera on Thursday that the outcomes of their investigation will likely be launched quickly and can include the post-mortem report.

Israeli army investigators confiscated the guns of some IDF troops as a part of their inquiry, reported the Washington Post on Thursday, citing an unnamed IDF official. The weapons had been taken so that they are often made accessible for ballistics testing, the official said.

Givara Al-Buderi, a fellow Al Jazeera correspondent and a detailed private friend of Abu Akleh, said she noticed the entry wound of a bullet simply above the correct eyebrow and was informed by the doctor that part of the bullet had remained lodged in Abu Akleh's skull.

Al-Buderi was referred to as by doctors to assist take away Abu Akleh's clothes and change her for the funeral.

"We took off her clothes and had to put a white dress on her," Al-Buderi instructed CNN, "I tried to put my hand behind her head, however there was nothing there."

"I felt around however there was nothing, nothing left."

An earlier version of this story incorrectly said the place Shireen Abu Akleh's funeral service was because of be held. It was being held at a Greek Catholic Church.

CNN's Nadeen Ebrahim, Mostafa Salem and Celine Alkhaldi in Abu Dhabi contributed reporting.