Israeli army bulldozes over American citizen

Israel & Palestine Forum

International activists say Israel intentionally killed U.S. woman
IBRAHIM BARZAK
Associated Press

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - A Palestinian-backed group of international activists on Monday disputed a claim by the Israeli military that a U.S. protester standing in the path of an Israeli bulldozer was crushed accidentally.

The International Solidarity Movement said Rachel Corrie of Olympia, Wash., was in the line of vision of the bulldozer driver Sunday as she stood in his path to try to prevent the demolition of a Palestinian home in the Rafah refugee camp.

"When the bulldozer refused to stop or turn aside she 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.

The Israeli military said Sunday that Corrie's death was an accident. It said small windows in the bulldozer's cab restricted the driver's vision. Several requests by The Associated Press to talk to an army commander in the area went unanswered.

Corrie, 23, a student at The Evergreen State College near Olympia, had been active in organizing events in Olympia's peace movement. Through a local group called Olympians for Peace in the Middle East, she joined the International Solidarity Movement, a Palestinian-led group that uses nonviolent methods to challenge Israeli occupation.

Adam Shapiro with the International Solidarity Movement, said Corrie's body would be flown to Olympia, her home town. Her parents, Craig and Cindy Corrie, moved to Charlotte, N.C., two years ago from Olympia.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat said Monday he contacted Corrie's family and expressed his condolences. "Our people embrace her and offer her our blessings," he said.

Amnesty International on Monday condemned Corrie's killing and called on the United States to suspend delivery of military equipment, including bulldozers, to Israel. In a statement, the human rights group called for an "independent investigation of her death."

Corrie's body was taken by ambulance Monday evening from a Palestinian hospital morgue to Israel, an Israeli army spokeswoman said. Joseph Smith, a member of the International Solidarity Movement, said the body would be flown home overnight from Tel Aviv.

At U.N. headquarters in Gaza City, about 200 Palestinians and foreigners attended a memorial service for Corrie on Monday. Four girls placed a picture of Corrie and flowers on an empty coffin, and mourners observed a moment of silence.

In Rafah, a 43-year-old Palestinian civilian killed by army fire Sunday, just after Corrie was crushed, was buried Monday. Mourners also carried an empty casket wrapped in U.S. and Palestinian flags, in memory of the peace activist.

Smith, who witnessed Sunday's incident, said it began when Corrie sat down in front of the bulldozer. He said the driver scooped her up with a pile of earth, dumped her on the ground and ran over her twice. Smith said Corrie was dressed in a bright orange jacket with reflective stripes.

The group said in its statement: "The bulldozer continued to advance so that she was pulled under the pile of dirt and rubble. After she had disappeared from view the driver kept advancing until the bulldozer was completely on top of her."

Protesters have stopped bulldozers in the past by sitting down in front of them, Smith said. Corrie did this Sunday, but this time the driver did not stop, Smith said.

Corrie's friends gathered around her bloodied body before she was taken to Rafah Hospital, the main medical center near the Gaza-Egypt border.

Pictures of Corrie, her head covered in a traditional Muslim headscarf, were published on the front pages of Israeli newspapers Monday.

Corrie wore a headscarf when working among the Palestinians, especially in Rafah where people tend to be more observant, Smith said.

A photo of Corrie taken in February show her in the center of a large demonstration, burning a U.S. flag made of paper.

The International Solidarity Movement has actively protested Israel's operations during the 29 months of violence. Last March, members of the group holed up in Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity during a military siege and sneaked into Arafat's compound when the army blockaded his Ramallah headquarters.

Yeah uih.. we read this on Monday, yoh. Survival of the fittest prevails yet again. Oh well..

Where have you been?
This is old news and if your stupid enough to stand in front of that - common sense would tell you "i may die"
but then, most protesters do not have common sense. Like Green Peace.

It's the hypocrisy that cracks me up! If Saddam, or North Korea or Col. Khadaffi or Idi Amin had run her over you'd be all gung ho to kill them. but since Jews killed her, you just seem to feel that "the dumb ***** got in the way."

So if Saddam gasses some protesters, so what? It doesn't bother me at all? So Saddam gassed his own people, so what? $hit happens right? Why punish Saddam or even criticise him, if it's ok for Israel, it should be ok for everybody.

sadddam breaks 17 resolutions, we go to war with him
Israel breaks 60, we reward them with military funding

makes perfect sense to me

PURE BULL**** YOU KNOW AND I KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING IS WRONG

You're totally confusing two separate situations with your mumbo-jumbo. There's a difference between a chick ran over by a vehicle because she was lying down in front of it OUT OF SIGHT of the operator and being specifically attacked by an assailant. She put herself in harm's way, pulled a stupid maneuver and paid the price. If Saddam were to "gas" protestors, that would be an assault now, wouldn't it?

The people Saddam killed often times had the same choice as those the Israelis kill...DON'T OPPOSE THE RULING POWER, whether it be Saddam or Sharon, Jews or Bathists...not much difference.

It's funny how people want to remove any responsibility from a protester and put it all on a heavy machinery operator. None of us was there to see what the bulldozer operator saw. I seriously doubt that he just ran her over. I get tired of radical protesters who put themselves in harms way and then whine when the police use rubber bullets on them or they get hurt. It is insane to feel sorry for them.

Finally a sane response. Thanks mystic.

it was just for its believes ....... as this man in 1989 in China .....

http://www.christusrex.org/www1/sdc/tank-1.jpg

I understand the concept nowar...what I dont think is that it solves anything. If anything, a person puts themselves in danger while trying to promote peace. That doesnt make any sense. But let me ask you...has that way of behavior EVER solved the peace issue? No.

Where did these pictures come from? And where is the picture of the house that was about to be razed to the ground and the picture of the girl actually getting run over? I guess what Im saying is that Im not sold on your proof. To me it looks like 3 people with a bulldozer out in a field in Oregon somewhere.

But anyway she stood in front of the bulldozer - its not like it was zooming at her at 60 mph...I think she couldve dodged it. And what about those great friends of hers? Were they just there for the show? No one smart enough or cared enough to try to save her?

Wow.... you guys are cold.

Yes she chose to STAND { not sit... sit infers she was lower to ground and easily missed by the operator/murderer } in front of the bulldozer.

If this protest { misguided or not } took place in a civilized country ... the driver would not have DARED to go near her... if he did and killed her... our laws { our being anyone of the developed first world nations } would prosecute him for ... depraved indifference AT LEAST!!!

These individuals... were motivated to stand up and peaceful say this will not happen! The fact that they were callously crushed does not make them failures... it does not make them stupid... it does not make them bimbos.

I really do not want to here such ugly words towards, arguably, saintly people.

The man in Tiennamen Square was an image that resounded for my generation { teen in 80's}. He was an image of the brutality of certain regimes. He bacame a symbol for human rights.

I know many of you could not make that stand.... that is why you insult it.

I don't think I could either.... the type of convictions required for such an act... well I would rather have armed myself and foolishly fired on the tank.... or in this new case the bulldozer.

But these individuals stood for PEACEFUL PROTEST. To have fought against the monsters was not their way....

I could not do it... but I would not presume to belittle them.

Maybe we live in a world where, if it happened now, Ghandi would have been kicked aside, clubbed and shot.

But once upon a time we recognized his NOBILITY and SACRIFICE.

While I agree with you that peaceful protesting is a heroic act, I have to disagree that such protesting should be fully legal because that way, for example, a country may nuke a few other countries and when it gets attacked, its civilians will stand in the way and make peace protests. Also terrorist organizations may hire civilians to work for them as body protectors and whenever policemen and soldiers go to arrest/kill them, they will call for these peace protesters to stop the attackers.

I do understand that a peaceful protest is a humane thing and a way of free speech, but if it's government's decision, if one person or few think differently, it doesn't mean they have to do something against it and that they should have the right to protest and the full power to stop government's actions. If that was this way, then the government wouldn't be able to do anything because to each of its action someone will always object.

Here is a link for more pictures of the incident:

http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article1248.shtml

I don't see how the action of 1 irresponsible heavy equipment operator reflects on all of Israel, the operator of the machine is accountable, not Israel. If Israel does nothing about it, than that is another story.

Realistically though, Rachel is also responsible for putting herself in that situation, she probably figured that he was going to move, or stop, but by the time that she realized he wasn't, it was too late. Tragic

Look. I have never said that she doesn't have the right to die for her cause. What I have a problem with is the fact that SHE could have prevented her own death so people need to stop blaming the driver.

I do believe that the china incident is quite a bit different. That gentleman lived in a communistic country that wouldn't think twice about putting a bullet to his head. I am sure he was willing to die that day, fortunately for him the tanks stopped but I believe that he fully thought he was going to die that day. Do we even know what became of him? For all we know he was shot dead by his government.

Her friends said that the driver was aware that she was there. I say that she was aware of the bulldozer. It's great that she had such a burning desire to get run over in the name of peace but it all seems in vane to me.

I also believe that there is almost no such thing as "peaceful" protesting. We have had plenty of protesting over the years in the States and it always involves vandalism and injuries. After the protesters have walked all over the rights of other citizens they then cry that the police had to intervene. Oh well.

Yes I agree that she put herself in that position, but think of it like this. If it came to the driver's attention that there was a capped off gas line sticking out of the ground, and it was in his way, would the driver move or run over it? My guess is that he would move so as not to run over and rupture a gas line. Which is more important? a gas line or a human?

OK. One last comment about the bulldozer. Rowdy, I understand you point about the woman not believing that someone would blatantly run her over until it was too late. I can also see another side of it and I could equally see the bulldozer operator thinking that "there is no way this girl is going to stand there, she will move at the last minute". The scoop on the front of that think is huge so once he got up close to her he would not have been able to see if she moved or not but probably assumed no one would be that stupid to just stand there so he proceeded. I would like to hear accounts of what the driver did once he realized what had happened. Did he go to her assistance? Or did he get out and just watch?


This whole conflict is just stupid. Every time the US (or anyone else but it always seems to be our responsibility) gets things moving it seems like the violence escalates. I hate to say this but sometimes it takes a catastrophe (aka nuke, genocide, or just a massive invasion by outside forces) to break a never ending cycle that keeps happening. I know that's a strong suggestion but I am with you rowdy, I'm just sick of both parties. Enough is enough. Maybe the world should just take that area for itself and turn it into a world monument for religion. A place to visit and reflect.

I dont think he did it on purpose...

I think its just another way of blaming someone for someone else's stupid actions.

Bottom line: If you place yourself in a dangerous position...be prepared for the consequence.

If he did do it on purpose.....well....My goodness...

We are talking about a war between Palestine and Israel. We have already seen that innocent people are dying. You cannot go into another country and think that things will work like you think they should work. If they think you are an enemy...they will treat you like one. (This goes for either side).

Again....place yourself in a bad spot, and bad things are gonna happen!!!

Mystic, I agree with you.


Nobody seems to give a rip about the Innocent people riding on buses when a murder bomber blows one up. Is their death not important because they were not "making a statement"? Yet someone who stood in the way of a moving bulldozer is glorified? I don't get it.

Fair enough Rowdy. I get where you are coming from.