The story of Rachel Corrie has broader implications. This piece by Laurie King-Irani talks about the vital role Rachel and the ISM volunteers are playing in protecting innocent Palestinians from Israeli brutality – a role more suited for official international peace keepers.
Steve Niva relates Rachel’s death to the ongoing brutality in the occupied territories.
King-Irani:
“The indomitable courage and will that Rachel demonstrated in confronting not only the bulldozer that killed her, but also the policies rooted in impunity that it represented, are commendable — nay, breathtaking. But without similar displays of resolve and courage from the United States and other High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions, more Palestinian civilians, and undoubtedly more ISM observers, will be murdered by the IDF in the coming days and weeks, as Ariel Sharon is expected to maximize the advantages provided by a US war on Iraq to undertake additional ethnic cleansing in Occupied Palestine.”
Niva:
“This past month, Israel nearly set a new record for killing Palestinians, mostly civilians, in a single month. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, Israeli assaults killed 82 Palestinians, of them 50 in the Gaza Strip and 32 in the West Bank, wounding an additional 616 persons…”
” These killings are the product of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s escalation of Israeli Army assaults on Palestinian population centers following his re-election on January 28, 2003. In the last two months, Israeli forces have largely focused their wrath on Gaza. They have conducted unprecedented armored military operations in Gaza city centers, pursued suspected militants deep into refugee camps and deployed bulldozers to destroy dozens of building and homes. This latter type of operation led to Rachel Corrie’s and Nuha Sweidan’s deaths.”
