IDF exonerates Rachel Corrie's murderer, the Army bulldozer dr
nsn | 29.06.2003 08:58
JERUSALEM - Israel's military prosecutor has exonerated Israeli soldiers in the death of an American peace activist, who was crushed to death by an army bulldozer in the Gaza Strip, the army said Thursday.
Rachel Corrie, 23, of Olympia, Wash., died March 16 trying to block the demolition of the home of a doctor in the Rafah refugee camp by standing in front of the bulldozer. The army said the home was being destroyed in an effort to block arms smuggling.
Israel and the Palestinians have been locked in a bloody 33-month conflict. The Rafah camp, on the Egyptian border, has been one of the flashpoints.
Members of her pro-Palestinian group, International Solidarity Movement, claimed that Corrie was visible to the bulldozer driver and that her death was malicious.
"When the bulldozer refused to stop or turn aside, (Rachel) climbed up onto the mound of dirt and rubble being gathered in front of it . . . to look directly at the driver, who kept on advancing," the group said in a statement.
Announcing the ruling, the army said the driver did not see her, claiming she was standing behind a mound of earth.
Military police investigating the Corrie case found that the soldiers operating the bulldozer had no intention of harming her, the army said in a statement.
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