Ramallah honors US pro-Palestinian activist who was killed by IDF bulldozer.
By ASSOCIATED PRESSrachel corrie protest 311(photo credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Palestinians in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Tuesday named a street after activist Rachel Corrie, who was crushed to death by an Israeli army bulldozer in a 2003 protest against house demolitions in Gaza.The dedication ceremony was held on the seventh anniversary of Corrie's death.Corrie's mother, Cindy, said her daughter stood for many other foreign activists who have come to the West Bank and Gaza in recent years to serve as a buffer between Palestinians and Israeli troops."I just wanted you to know ... that you do not stand alone," she told a small group of Palestinians, including the mayor and governor of Ramallah. "People are stepping up. They will not be silent."On March 16, 2003, Corrie stood in the path of an armored Israeli bulldozer as it approached a Palestinian home targeted for demolition along Gaza's border with Egypt, part of an operation against smuggling tunnels.The driver has said he didn't see Corrie, and the Israeli military hasruled her death an accident. Corrie's parents reject that version andhave brought a civil suit against the Israeli government.The trial began last week in Haifa.Corrie was an activist in the International Solidarity Movement, agroup that sends foreigners into hot spots to assist Palestinians.Often they endanger themselves by standing between Israeli forces andPalestinians, trying to prevent soldiers from acting.Corrie's story has become a rallying cry for pro-Palestinian activists.Based on her diary and e-mails to her parents, the story was turnedinto a stage play, "My Name Is Rachel Corrie."Corrie hailed from Olympia, Washington.
