THE VERDICT

The verdict in the Rachel Corrie case is out and the ruling is that Corrie was solely responsible for her own death.

From the official summary of the court’s verdict:

"During the relevant period of time, the 'Philadelphi Corridor' was the site of daily warfare, i.e. daily gunfire by snipers, missile fire and IED explosions directed at the IDF forces. During this period, unceasing efforts were made to kidnap IDF soldiers. Only soldiers who were in combat units fought in the region."

"According to the notes made in the IDF records, from September 2000 to the date of the incident that is the focus of this lawsuit (March 16, 2003), nearly 6,000 grenades had been thrown at IDF forces in the Corridor; there had been approximately 1,400 incidents of gunfire; and there were more than 40 occurrences of mortar fire. These aforementioned events led to the injury and death of many Israelis."

"The United States government issued a travel warning on March 16, 2003 to warn American citizens against visiting the Gaza Strip area or the West Bank."

"During the period pertinent to this case, there was a military directive in force declaring the 'Philadelphi Corridor' a 'closed military area' and forbidding the entry of civilians."

In the aftermath of the verdict, Israel spokesperson Mark Regev said that the bulldozers were not razing Palestinian homes but clearing terrain so it could not harbour snipers. He also vigorously defended the independence of the Israeli courts and pointed out that Rachel had taken a risk in entering what was effectively a war zone.

This is the background to the death of Rachel Corrie that I fully anticipate will be lost in the fog of the war being fought against the Jewish State by elements in the so-called media.