Israel to boycott inquest into death of British peace activist shot in Gaz

[Violet_Crumble]

Israel will boycott an inquest opening today in London which will investigate the death of a British peace activist shot dead in broad daylight by an Israeli soldier.
Tom Hurndall, 22, died after being shot in Rafah, Gaza, while trying to lead Palestinian children to safety after the soldier opened fire from a nearby observation tower in April 2003.

His mother, Jocelyn, told the Guardian she is angry Israel is not cooperating as she still has many questions about how her son came to be shot: "We are hoping the coroner will address the culture of impunity in which the soldier was functioning and the enormous lack of cooperation we have experienced from the Israelis."

Mrs Hurndall said that only when the family went to Israel and for seven weeks pressured the authorities and raised the case in the media did any sort of investigation begin.

Her solicitor, Imran Khan, said Israel's boycott of the inquest is disrespectful: "It shows their disdain for the whole process."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,1750623,00.html

[ClintonTyree]

1. Taking a page out of GWB's playbook....

no investigations are necessary. Everything is as we tell you it is. Move along, citizen. A free and open Democracy does not allow shit like this to happen. But a free and open Democracy is not what they want.

[Phx_Dem]

3. Yeh just like the British

"His mother said the lack of reaction from the top of the British government bothered her: "I'm shocked that Tony Blair has never publicly denounced the shooting of Tom. I think we have to question our relationship with Israel if they are not going to show themselves to be transparent and cooperative about the killing of British citizens and Palestinians."

"A spokesman from Israel's London embassy said: "We regret the tragic death of Tom Hurndall. A due legal process has been completed in Israel and a soldier convicted of the killing and jailed. A full account has been presented to the family and the British government. The legal procedure in Israel has been completed."

[Englander]

4. The British authorities didn't fabricate claims about the murder.

Or refuse to meet the family, or send useless cheques, or refuse to help the
family in their attempt to bring the killer to justice. The British Govt/Embassy
has, actually, been very helpful in this instance, bliar's been as useful as he
always is, ie not in the slightest.

'Letters
Israel's contempt for Tom

Saturday November 22, 2003
The Guardian

If my intelligent, courageous son, Tom, had not been left severely brain damaged by an Israeli soldier, he would have vouched for the fact that I am not prone to speechlessness. Words now fail me.

Two days ago, I received notification from my bank that the cheque sent by Israel's ambassador, for a fraction of the expenses incurred by the family for Tom's repatriation and for which we have had to wait five months, had not been honoured by the Bank of Israel. "Insufficient funds" was the reason given.

This is one of a catalogue of actions which can only be perceived as an illustration of the contempt shown towards the issue of Tom's shooting. We endeavoured for weeks, through the British embassy and the media, to have a meeting with somebody in the Israeli government who might give us some response as to what happened before we finally met representatives. Recently, the Israeli ambassador in London arranged a meeting which was subsequently cancelled without proper explanation.

As money is so tight, might it not be appropriate for Israel to channel less towards its illegal "security" fences or the development of remote control bulldozers and more towards the rebuilding of destroyed houses in Palestine and other debts, such as Tom's repatriation?

It is a mind-numbing task to understand the morality and to use the logic of the Israeli government. What hope do Palestinians have when such profound disregard and disrespect is shown to humanity, collectively and individually?
Jocelyn Hurndall
London

http://www.guardian.co.uk/letters/story/0,3604,1090762,00.html

[Phx_Dem]

5. Has the check cleared yet?

She writes a letter to the Guardian, but did she contact anyone at the bank to find out what is going on?


"A spokesman from Israel's London embassy said: "We regret the tragic death of Tom Hurndall. A due legal process has been completed in Israel and a soldier convicted of the killing and jailed. A full account has been presented to the family and the British government. The legal procedure in Israel has been completed."

You don't accept the legal process in Israel? Why is that? What is the point of an "inquest" other than political?

[Englander]

7. Gee, some rhetorical quests, non sequiturs & an ad hominem.

I read the quote from the spokesbot the first time, there's no need to repeat the
c&p exercise.

[Phx_Dem]

9. OK Dude whatever nt

[Englander]

2. That's been the attitude from Day One.

Disdain, disrepespect, lack of co-operation, &tc.

[Scurrilous]

6. British peace activist was 'intentionally killed'

<snip>

"A jury has ruled that a British activist shot while acting as a human shield in the Gaza Strip was "intentionally killed".
Tom Hurndall, from north London, was wearing an orange jacket to mark him out as a peace activist.

The 22-year-old had apparently been trying to move young Palestinian children from the line of fire when he was hit in the head. He was left in a coma and died nine months later.

Speaking after the hearing, the Hurndall family representative, Michael Mansfield QC, said they were delighted with the verdict. However, he stressed there was still work to be done.

"Make no mistake about it, the Israeli defence force have today been found culpable by this jury of murder," he said.

The family accused the Israeli authorities of a "cover-up", calling on the British government to take action under the Geneva convention.
They said it should investigate, and if necessary extradite the five Israeli officers they believe made up the a chain of command which led to Mr Hurndall being shot."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,1750916,00.html

[Englander]

8. When do the attempts at extradition start? n/t

[Scurrilous]

15. U.K. coroner recommends war crimes charges for IDF soldiers

<snip>

"A U.K. coroner said on Monday that he would recommend that the British attorney general seek legal action over the deaths of two pro-Palestinian activists killed by Israel Defense Forces fire in 2003.

The statements came after a British inquest jury ruled that Tom Hurndall was unlawfully killed by an IDF soldier in the Gaza Strip. It was the second time in two weeks that a British coroner's court had ruled that a U.K. citizen shot by Israeli soldiers in 2003 was unlawfully killed."

<snip>

"The U.K. daily the Guardian reported that coroner Andrew Reid would write to the attorney general suggesting he seek war crimes charges against five IDF officers through Geneva Conventions Act regulations on when soldiers can and cannot shoot.

A British government source said after the verdict that "upsetting the Israelis" would not keep the government from pursuing the case, the British daily reported."

[number6]

10. sounds like murder to me

Israeli cover up

[rfkrfk]

11. this 'inquest' has jurisdiction over every homicide in the world?

WTF ?

[Englander]

12. No, only Uk citizens murdered.

Only for those incidents where a Uk citizen was unlawfully killed, in this instance
by a member of another country's armed forces, which means a wilful killing of a
civilian under the Geneva Convention Act, which means it was a 'war crime'.

[rfkrfk]

14. any corpse could be issued a British passport

WTF
eveything is now everybodies business

[Violet_Crumble]

17. Huh?

That made no sense at all. Are you arguing that Tom Hurndall was only given British citizenship posthumously?

Violet...

[rfkrfk]

18. what if you get in a fistfight with some tourist...

would you fight extradition to the tourist's country?
if so,why?

don't assume this will be limited to homicides

[Violet_Crumble]

19. What has this got to do with Tom Hurndall's inquest??

diddlysquat from what I can make out...

Violet...

[rfkrfk]

20. what jusisdiction does GB have in Gaza?

some special thing with only homicides?

[Violet_Crumble]

21. Here's a link to UK procedures for inquests...

...for citizens who die overseas. Maybe you'd like to read through it and explain what about it you don't approve of? Because I'm not understanding what if anything yr questions have to do with the inquest of Tom Hurndell...

http://www.acpo.police.uk/asp/policies/Data/deaths_abroad_uk_citizens.doc

Violet...

[rfkrfk]

22. I don't like, GB has jurisdictiom everywhere

do you like other countries having jurisdiction
over you?

[Tom Joad]

23. It certainly has a right to investigate the murder of its citizens in

foreign countries. The United States usually makes damn sure that any murderer of its citizens is brought to justice (unless that would hurt an ally, then they get a free pass to mayhem, see Rachel Corrie, see nuns killed in El Salvador)

[rfkrfk]

25. in what country, are these rights?

the authority of investigators is what, ?

in disputed-status Gaza
in Israel

can have witnesses detained?
who would do this?

can force testimony?, with what means?

[Violet_Crumble]

26. 'disputed-status' Gaza?

The only people disputing the status of Gaza are extremists into that Greater Israel rubbish...

It's been pointed out to you that the US makes sure that murderers of its citizens overseas gets brought to justice. The British investigation is no different than that of many countries when their citizens are killed overseas. Are you opposed to any country conducting inquests into the killing of their own citizens overseas or is there some different standard being applied because the murderers of Tom Hurndall are Israelis?

Violet...

[rfkrfk]

27. have witnesses been summoned to the UK?

if not, what is the holdup?

[Violet_Crumble]

28. I'd like you to answer the question I just asked you...

Because I honestly have no idea what yr problem with the British system is when many other countries have the same or very similar ways of dealing with the deaths of their nationals overseas...


Violet...

[rfkrfk]

29. are British magistrates too lazy to issue arrest warrants?

WTF is the problem, start arresting people.
lazy bums

[Violet_Crumble]

30. Well, that sure was a strange answer to a question...

It had zero to do with what I asked you. I've posted a link to the British procedures for conducting inquests into nationals killed in foreign countries, I've tried asking questions to get a sense of why yr so up in arms about Tom Hurndall's inquest, and each and every time all I get in response is bizarre questions totally unrelated to anything that's been said....

Violet...

[Tom Joad]

24. What about when 3 nuns were killed in El Salvador?

Were you proud that the US took no action when 3 nuns were killed in El Salvador, because the Reagan regime were apologists for the El Salvadorean right-wing death squads?

Same shit here, death squads operating in Gaza, international citizens die, and their respective governments (U.S. & U.K.) look the other way. I don't expect B-liar to do anything about this. That may make you happy but i think it is a sad day for international justice.

There should be sanctions until either Israel takes action or allows Britain to take legal action to try the accused. I won't hold my breath.

[Englander]

13. Calls for UK to act over Britons shot dead in Gaza

Vikram Dodd
Tuesday April 11, 2006
The Guardian

The attorney general was last night called on to seek war crimes charges against five Israeli officers after an inquest jury found that a soldier under their command intentionally killed a British peace activist in Gaza.

Tom Hurndall, 22, died after being shot in broad daylight by an Israeli soldier who later said his commanders had issued orders allowing him to shoot even unarmed civilians. Sergeant Taysir Hayb was convicted of manslaughter by an Israeli court and jailed for eight years for shooting Mr Hurndall in April 2003 as the Briton tried to rescue children who froze in fear after the soldier opened fire.

Yesterday a jury at St Pancras coroner's court in London found Mr Hurndall had been unlawfully killed and deliberately shot by the soldier "with the intention of killing him". Lawyers for the Hurndall family said this amounted to a finding that the peace activist had been murdered.

Last week the same court found that a journalist, James Miller, had been murdered after being shot by an Israeli soldier three weeks after Mr Hurndall, and just one mile away in southern Gaza.

Andrew Reid, the coroner who heard both cases, announced he would write to the attorney general about how similar fatalities could be prevented, including examining possible prosecutions of Israeli commanders. In court Dr Reid said he would write to the attorney because the case raised wider issues of command in the Israeli military and because "two British citizens engaged in lawful activities" had been killed by Israeli soldiers.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,1751368,00.html

[Scurrilous]

16. MP's call for sanctions against Israel over shootings

<snip>

"Economic sanctions against Israel should be considered if the country refuses to put its soldiers before the courts in the UK over the death of two British peace activists, an MP has said.

Sir Gerald Kaufman, Labour MP for Manchester Gorton, claimed there was an element in the Israeli military which was "out of control".

He was speaking about the deaths of Tom Hurndall, 22, and James Miller, 34, who were both shot in the Gaza Strip in 2003."

<snip>

"Sir Gerald told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: "One possibility is to ask for those who are accused of these murders to be brought to Britain to be tried in this country.

"The second is to put them before an international war crimes tribunal.

"If the Israelis don't agree to either of those then I think we have got to consider economic sanctions against Israel."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/04/11/usanctions.xml&sSheet=/portal/2006/04/11/i