More than eight years ago U.S. citizen Rachel Corrie was bulldozed to death by Israeli troops.
In court testimony, on April 4, 2011, the Israeli captain in charge of the demolition operation, of Palestinian homes, says he questioned his orders to bulldoze while civilians stood in the way. He said he was ordered to continue the operation anyway.
“Today’s testimonies provide further strong evidence regarding the Israeli military failure to take necessary and reasonable measures to protect Rachel’s life and prevent her avoidable tragic death. They also underscore the systemic inadequacy of the military investigation system which in this case, was nothing but a whitewash.”-Hussein Abu Hussein, attorney for the Corrie family.
The Israeli captain, as well as the driver of the bulldozer, both contradicted the official report by the Israeli army. They both said it was clear Corrie was run over by the bulldozer, which the official Army report denies.
The Israeli captain also testified that the order to continue bulldozing, with civilians present, violated the Army’s own policies. Standard practice on the ground was to stop if someone was within five meters of the bulldozer. He also confirmed that the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) had video of the incident.