An Israeli ex-soldier who killed UK peace activist Tom Hurndall in the Gaza Strip has been jailed for eight years.

 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4140586.stm

"It's a huge landmark, it's a milestone, it's the first time that a soldier's been convicted of manslaughter since the first intifada and it's obviously been a long time coming."
Sophie Hurndall, sister.

Amnesty International's Kate Allen said that while the person responsible for Mr Hurndall's death had been brought to justice, it was "striking that this was almost entirely due to tireless campaigning by his family".

"The strong suspicion is that if Mr Hurndall's family had not shown utter determination to uncover the truth of their son's death, then no-one would ever have faced justice for what happened to Tom," she said.

Mr Hurndall, a Manchester Metropolitan University journalism and photography student, was in the Gaza Strip with the pro-Palestinian International Solidarity Movement, which aims to oppose Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories by non-violent means.

According to witnesses, Mr Hurndall was shot in the head as he acted as a human shield, escorting children away from gunfire. The court heard Hayb fired at him from an Israeli army watchtower, using a sniper rifle with a telescopic sight.

As well as manslaughter, Hayb was found guilty of obstruction of justice, incitement to false testimony, false testimony and improper conduct.

Captain Hilla Gorni of the Israeli army said the jail sentence would send out a warning to other soldiers.