Bulletin N°63
24 March 2003
Grenoble, France
 

Dear Colleagues and Friends,

Among the mountains of mail we are receiving daily, Alain Joxe, Professor of
French foreign policy and military science at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes
en Sciences Sociales, in Paris, has forwarded to us information on the
murder of Rachel Corrie, as well as a Petition protesting the Israeli
police murder of this young American pacifist, who was destroyed at Rafah,
in Occupied Gaza, on 16 March 2003 by Israeli Defense Forces as she was
serving as a human shield protecting a Palestinian home from being leveled
by an Israeli-purchased Caterpiller bulldozer.

We encourage all participants in our research bulletin (A) to read the
descriptive materials below on the murder of Rachel Corrie, (B) to visit
the web site below describing the social movement now active in America
trying to make CITIZEN ARRESTS of Caterpiller executives guilty of
collaborating with Israeli CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY, and (C) to sign the
Petition at the end of this message (making any modifications you feel are
appropriate) and to send copies to the following addresses:
 

1) to The Israeli Embassy in Paris, by email, at--
         <Paris@israel.org>

2) to the Israeli Defense Minsitry, by email, at--
         <sar@mod.gov.il>

3) to The Israeli Press Attache, by email, at--
         <info@mail.idf.il>

4) by regular mail to the Israeli Embassy in Paris, at--
         Ambassade d'Israél
         3 Rue Rabelais
         75008 Paris

and

5) by Fax to the Israeli Defense Ministry, at--
         telephone no. :  00 972 3 696 27 57.
 
 

Sincerely,
F. Feeley
Professor of American Studies/
Director of Research

___________________________________________________________________________
A.
Photo story: Israeli bulldozer driver murders American peace activist, 16
March 2003.
http://rafah.virtualactivism.org/
Mohammad Al-Moghair
 

Rachel Corrie (ISM Handout)
The girl, Rachel Corey [sic], 23 years old from the state of
Washington, was killed while she was trying to prevent Israeli army
bulldozers from destroying a Palestinian home. Other foreigners who
were with her said the driver of the bulldozer was aware that Rachel
was there, and continued to destroy the house. Initially he dropped
sand and other heavy debris on her, then the bulldozer pushed her to
the ground where it proceeded to drive over her, fracturing both of
her arms, legs and skull. She was transferred to hospital, where she
later died. Another foreigner was also injured in the attack and has
been hospitalized - at this stage his nationality is unknown.(16
March 2003)
 
 

An International Solidarity Movement (ISM) volunteer holds up Rachel
Corrie's US passport as another peace activist sits in shock, Al-Najjar
Hospital, Rafah, Occupied Gaza. Rachel was killed by an Israeli bulldozer
driver while protesting the demolition of a Palestinian home.
(<http://rafah.virtualactivism.org/>Mohammad Al-Moghair)
 
 
 

The photos clearly show that Rachel was well marked, had a megaphone,
and posed no threat to the bulldozer driver
 
 

A clearly marked Rachel Corrie, holding a megaphone, confronts an
Israeli bulldozer driver attempting to demolish a Palestinian home,
Rafah, Occupied Gaza, 16 March 2003. (ISM Handout)
 
 
 

Other peace activists tend to Rachel after being injured by the
Israeli bulldozer driver, Rafah, Occupied Gaza, 16 March 2003. (ISM
Handout)
 
 

Rachel Corrie lies on the ground fatally injured by the Israeli
bulldozer, Rafah, Occupied Gaza, 16 March 2003. (ISM Handout)
 
 

Rachel after the bulldozer
 
 

Rachel in Najjar hostpital, Rafah, Occupied Gaza. Ha'aretz newspaper
reported that Dr. Ali Musa, a doctor at Al-Najjar, stated that the
cause of death was "skull and chest fractures".
(<http://rafah.virtualactivism.org/>Mohammad Al-Moghair)
 
 

Colleagues of Rachel comfort each other in Najjar hostpital, Rafah,
Occupied Gaza. Ha'aretz newspaper reported that a second activist was
also injured at the same location.
(<http://rafah.virtualactivism.org/>Mohammad Al-Moghair)
 
 

Members of the Israeli army and associated Israeli settler
paramilitary units have been responsible for the killing of 2,181
Palestinians and the injuring of another 22,218 between 29 September
2000 and 14 March 2003.
 

In addition to the killing of Rachel Corrie by the bulldozer driver,
Israeli troops have shot and killed several other internationals in
different incidents during the Intifada: German doctor Harald
Fischer, Italian cameraman Rafaeli Ciriello, and British United
Nations worker Iain Hook.
<http://electronicintifada.net/cgi-bin/artman/exec/search.cgi?keyword=
iain%20hook>

_________________________________________
B.
U.S. Citizen Arrest Confrontation Company Executives for "Criminal
Collaboration" at the Caterpiller Home Office in Washington, D.C.

            <http://www.divest-from-israel-campaign.org>
 

_________________________________________
C.
Letter/Petition to Representatives of the Israeli Government Demanding a
Criminal Investigation into the Murder of Rachel Corrie.
 

Subject: URGENT : assassinat de Rachel Corrie par l'armé isralienne à Gaza
avec un bulldozer/ the murder of Rachel Corrie by the Israeli Army using a bulldozer in Gaza.

A la suite de l'assassinat par le biais d'un bulldozer des Forces
Israeliennes de Défense, dimanche dernier, de Rachel Corrie (jeune
américaine de 23 ans, pacifiste, membre de International Solidarity
Movement) et qui s'était interposée à Rafah / bande de Gaza entre le
bulldozer et une maison palestinienne vouée la destruction, assassinat
perpétré de sang-froid devant plusieurs
témoins (tant Palestiniens que d'autres internationaux de ISM - cf
informations et photos sur les sites web), nous vous remercions de bien
vouloir vous associer D'URGENCE cette campagne de protestation par e-mail
ou par courrier. Des milliers de mails ou courriers doivent être envoyés,
par tous et toutes : l'Etat d'Israel a franchi une étape dans l'horreur,
que nous ne devons en aucun cas laisser passer sans réagir.

Vous pouvez utiliser le modléle de lettre de protestation ci-dessous,
personnaliser autant que possible, et l'envoyer : par e-mail à l'ambassade
d'Israel Paris ( Paris@israel.org ) avec copie au Ministre de la Défense
Israélien ( sar@mod.gov.il ) et son porte-parole ( info@mail.idf.il ), ou
par courrier à :

Ambassade d'Israél
3 Rue Rabelais
75008 Paris

et

Faxer au Ministére de la Défense au no. :  00 972 3 696 27 57.
 

*******
Objet : assassinat de Rachel Corrie, pacifiste, par les Forces Israéliennes
de Défense.

French version
En ma qualité de citoyen/ne de l'Union Européenne, je tiens à vous exprimer
ma plus totale condamnation de l'Etat d'Israél à la suite de l'assassinat
de Rachel Corrie, qui était une jeune pacifiste de 23 ans et de nationalité
américaine. Cet assassinat a été perpétré de sang-froid (selon les nombreux
témoins présents et documents photographiques), par le moyen d'un bulldozer
placé sous la responsabilité des Forces Israéliennes de Défense, à Rafah /
bande de Gaza, le dimanche 16 Mars. Rachel Corrie tentait de s'interposer
entre ce bulldozer et une maison palestinienne vouée à la destruction,
cette destruction constituant un crime de guerre commis par le gouvernement
Israélien, et ce au titre des Conventions de Genève. Rachel Corrie ne
défendait donc rien d'autre - et de façon totalement pacifique - que le
respect du droit international dans les Territoires Occupés par Israël
depuis 1967. Cet "assassinat par bulldozer" rappelle notamment les crimes
de guerre commis par l'état d'Israël en Avril 2002 dans le camp de réfugiés
de Jénine, lorsque des bulldozers ont été utilisés pour écraser et
ensevelir sous les gravas les corps de plusieurs Palestiniens, certains
d'entre eux étant encore éventuellement vivants... Ce nouvel assassinat ne
pouvant rester impuni, je vous prie de me communiquer toutes informations
quant aux procédures pénales entamées par Israël à l'encontre de leurs
auteurs (notamment le conducteur de l'engin, ainsi que tous les officiers
de l'IDF sous l'autorité desquels il était placé).

SIGNE :                  PRENOM/NOM                          VILLE/PAYS
 

English version
As a Citizen of the European Union (the United States of America), I claim
my right to express my total condamnation of the State of Israel for the
murder of Rachel Corrie, a young pacifist, 23 years old and of American
nationality. According to numerous witnesses and documentary photographs
this murder in cold blood was comitted in Rafah, on the Gaza Strip, on
Sunday, 16 March, by Israeli Defense Forces by the use of a bulldozer.
Rachel Corrie tried to intervene between this bulldozer and a Palestinian
home that was targeted for destruction. This destruction itself constitutes
a criminal act by the Israeli government and is in violation of the Geneva
Conventions. Rachel Corrie was doing nothing more than defending  --and in
a non-violent manner-- international law in the Palestinian Territories
which have been militarily occupied by Israel since 1967. This murder by a
bulldozer evokes the memory of other recent war crimes committed by the
State of Israel in April 2002, in the refugie camp of Jenin, where
bulldozers were used to crush, kill, and bury alive many Palestinian citizens.

This new murder must not go unpunished, and I ask you to please send me all
pertenant information concerning the judicial proceedures initiated by the
Israeli government to investigate authors of this crime (notably the driver
of the tractor, as well as the officers of the IDF under whose authority
this crime took place).
 
 

SIGNATURE :             NAME/FIRST NAME                      CITY/COUNTRY
 
 
 

*********************
Francis McCollum Feeley
Professor of American Studies
Director of Research at CEIMSA
Center for the Advanced Study of American
Institutions and Social Movements
http://www.u-grenoble3.fr/ciesimsa
University of Grenoble-3
France
Tel: 04.76.82.43.00