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| Gaza activist's death case opens | |
| (about 6 hours later) | |
| A court case brought by the family of Rachel Corrie, a US protester killed by an Israeli army bulldozer in 2003, has begun in Israel. | |
| The civil action against the Israeli defence ministry will decide whether damages should be paid for her death in Gaza at the age of 23. | The civil action against the Israeli defence ministry will decide whether damages should be paid for her death in Gaza at the age of 23. |
| Corrie and other activists had been trying to stop the demolition of Palestinian homes. | |
| Her family has maintained that a full investigation was never carried out. | Her family has maintained that a full investigation was never carried out. |
| Corrie's writings - published posthumously - and a play about her life made her a symbol of the international campaign on behalf of Palestinians. | |
| Driver 'unaware' | Driver 'unaware' |
| About 20 protesters held signs in her memory outside the court in Haifa, where her family are suing for more than US$300,000 in damages. | |
| The Israeli army concluded in an investigation in 2003 that its forces were not to blame for Corrie's death. | |
| It says that on the day she died, bulldozers had been flattening ground in the Rafah refugee camp in an attempt to stop suicide bombers reaching Jewish targets. | |
| She was hidden behind an earthwork and the military bulldozer driver was not aware she was there and the activists should not have been in a closed military zone, the military said. | |
| Activists present at the time have said she was clearly visible and was looking directly into the cabin of the bulldozer. | |
| Ms Corrie's family says the order to use bulldozers should never have been given while non-combatants - the peace activists - were in the area. | Ms Corrie's family says the order to use bulldozers should never have been given while non-combatants - the peace activists - were in the area. |
| Craig and Cindy Corrie want a fuller account of their daughter's death | Craig and Cindy Corrie want a fuller account of their daughter's death |
| "We've been asking for essentially justice for seven years since Rachel was killed," her father, Craig Corrie, told the BBC. | |
| "Now it's finally come to court, and of course we want to find out the information [about her death] and have some accountability." | "Now it's finally come to court, and of course we want to find out the information [about her death] and have some accountability." |
| Mr Corrie says he believes that the driver of the bulldozer received new orders just before his daughter was killed "something to the effect of not letting the internationals [peace activists] stop them". | Mr Corrie says he believes that the driver of the bulldozer received new orders just before his daughter was killed "something to the effect of not letting the internationals [peace activists] stop them". |
| "Five minutes later Rachel was killed. So with that order apparently something changed and Rachel didn't know the change," he said. | "Five minutes later Rachel was killed. So with that order apparently something changed and Rachel didn't know the change," he said. |
| Ms Corrie's mother, Cindy, described her daughter as a compassionate person who "opened people's eyes" to the situation in Gaza. | Ms Corrie's mother, Cindy, described her daughter as a compassionate person who "opened people's eyes" to the situation in Gaza. |
| Diaries kept during her time in the Palestinian territories were later turned into a play - My Name is Rachel Corrie - which has toured all over the world, including the West Bank and Israel. | Diaries kept during her time in the Palestinian territories were later turned into a play - My Name is Rachel Corrie - which has toured all over the world, including the West Bank and Israel. |