An Israeli court on Tuesday rejected accusations that Israel was to blame for the death of American activist Rachel Corrie, who was crushed by an army bulldozer during a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Gaza in 2003.
Corrie’s family had accused Israel of intentionally and unlawfully killing their 23-year-old daughter, launching a civil case in the northern Israeli city of Haifa after a military investigation had cleared the army of wrong-doing.
Judge Oded Gershon said Corrie’s death was a “regrettable accident”, but invoked a clause that absolved the army because the incident had happened during a war-time situation, adding that the activist had ignored warnings to leave the area.
Corrie came from Olympia, Washington, and was a volunteer with the pro-Palestinian International Solidarity Movement. She had been wearing a bright orange vest at the time of the incident but the bulldozer driver said he never saw her.
Source: Reuters
Photostory here