Israeli courts declared the IDF not at fault.
Con Coughlin is getting himself in trouble by asking on his blog “What on earth was Rachel Corrie doing in front of an Israeli army bulldozer in the first place? (Read the comments.)
The Guardian article has no comments, but plenty of bias.
The AP story goes on for 11 paragraphs before it publishes this fact:
On the day Rachel Corrie died, she and other activists had entered a closed military zone to protest the demolition policy.
That’s a fact that is glossed over by Corrie supporters. She and the other “activists” were in an active military zone. They were standing in front of bulldozers that had to have special reinforced metal cabins–and thus limited line-of-sight–because Palestinian terrorists were shooting at them. Rachel Corrie’s death is tragic, but it is also the risk that she and the other ISM “activists” took by siding with the terrorists who were smuggling weapons and bombs into Israel. And that’s the other aspect of the case that isn’t mentioned much in the mainstream press: The bulldozers were destroying smuggling tunnels that day.
The fix, of course, is in. NPR quotes Corrie’s mother, using maximum bias, but nobody from the Israeli government.
Corrie’s mother, Cindy, told The Jerusalem Post that she was “hurt” by the verdict. The family’s lawyer said the court’s decision was so close to the government’s conclusion, the government could have written it.
“From the beginning it was clear that there is a system to protect soldiers and provide them with impunity at the cost of civilians,” she told the Post. “Now we now that the protection for soldiers extends to the court.”
Cindy added: “At least we have had access to a court system, which most Palestinians are denied.”
That is an outright lie. Also, if you click on the link to the Post article that NPR includes above, you find this in the lead:
In the verdict, Judge Oded Gershon invoked the principle of the combatant activities exception, noting that IDF forces had been attacked in the same area Corrie was killed just hours earlier.
Funny how the NPR doesn’t think that side of the story is relevant. Nor do they quote this from the New York Times article they refer:
Ms. Corrie’s parents and sister attended every session of the trial, spending about $200,000 on travel, translation services and other expenses.
Really? $200,000 in expenses? Who’s paying for it? The Corries are not wealthy, and your credit cards can only go so far. Find out who is paying the expenses, and you’ll see who is pushing this battle. Dollars to donuts Mahmoud Abbas has had the PA contribute to the defense.
And lastly, check out this lovely piece of subtle bias in the Reuters account:
Few Israelis showed much sympathy for Corrie’s death, which took place during the second Palestinian Intifada (uprising) in which thousands of Palestinians were killed and hundreds of Israelis died in suicide bombings.
Note that Palestinians were killed, while Israelis died. Suicide bombings? Just another cause of death, like cancer. But these are those damned unsympathetic Israelis, who can’t find it in their hearts to feel sorry for a woman who died while trying to protect Palestinian terrorists’ homes and smuggling tunnels from being destroyed.
Shame on those heartless bastards.
Exit question: Think the Corrie verdict news articles will outpace the number of news articles on Syria?
Isn’t that kind of the point to making yourself a human shield? That some series of events actually transpired to make her actually BE a human shield is of little to no consequence. Her death is not materially different from that of a suicide bomber who only kills them self. Fine for political or rhetorical statements, but no actual crime against her was committed.