On March 16 2003, Rachel Corrie, as part of her activities with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), had gone to Rafah on the Egypt-Gaza border to prevent IDF demolitions of arms smuggling tunnels. ISM activists had repeatedly interfered with these operations, standing in front of the bulldozers and then leaping out of harm’s way. In this case, the IDF was bulldozing shrubbery that camouflaged the tunnels. Rachel apparently thought she was protecting the nearby home of a Palestinian pharmacist. She knelt in front of the bulldozer behind a pile of dirt.
The ISM claimed the bulldozer intentionally ran her over and killed her. After extensive investigation, the IDF concluded that the driver could not see her and that her death was an unfortunate accident. The IDF Judge Advocate’s Office concluded: “The driver at no point saw or heard Corrie. She was standing behind debris which obstructed the view of the driver and the driver had a very limited field of vision due to the protective cage he was working in.” An autopsy revealed that the bulldozer never rolled over Corrie: she was killed when debris dislodged by the bulldozer struck her head.
The ISM claim was based on two photos it released: one of Rachel standing in a bright orange flak jacket, a bull horn in her hand, with a bulldozer only yards away; the second of the fallen Rachel, the bulldozer just behind her. ISM claimed these photos were taken within minutes of each other. However, it quickly became apparent that the photos had not been taken sequentially, but probably hours apart. The first photo showed a morning sky; the second photo showed an afternoon sky. The bulldozer in the first picture was not the same one shown in the second picture. The first picture did not fit initial eyewitness reports that Rachel did not have a bullhorn in her hand at the time of the accident nor did it show the mound of earth repeatedly described. ISM bystanders said no photographers were present before the accident occurred. The IDF concluded that Rachel was sitting on a mound of dirt and could not be seen by the driver. When he continued his operations, she could have rolled away but instead tried to climb to the top of the mound but the digging drew her downward, causing the accident. Later autopsy reports revealed that the cause of death was blows to the head, probably from the heavy debris dislodged by the bulldozer.
Rachel Corrie "before" the accident (International Solidarity Movement)
After the accident (International Solidarity Movement)
Several news agencies that published the two pictures as sequential later corrected the error, including CNN (March 25 2003) and The New York Times (March 26 2003). But the ISM and other pro-Palestinian supporters continue to accuse Israel of intentional homicide.
Additional Information:
The Stranger, April 3, 2003
by David Bedein, Israel Resource Review, March 21, 2003
Jewish Virtual Library
Peace with Realism
Honest Reporting, March 20, 2003
Wall Street Journal OpinionJournal, March 17, 2003