Cameraman killing was 'war crime'
The family of a British cameraman shot
dead by Israeli soldiers while working in Gaza says the killing
should be treated as a war crime.
James Miller, 34, from Braunton, Devon,
was gunned down while making a film about Palestinian children in
the Rafah refugee camp in May 2003.He was trying to ask the soldiers
if it was safe to leave the area when he was fatally shot in front
of colleagues.
He was murdered, an inquest jury in London
decided on Thursday.
During the inquest, Mr Miller's widow Sophy,
35, named the Israeli soldier who shot her husband as First Lieutenant
Heib from the Bedouin Desert Reconnaissance Battalion, who was commanding
a unit. He was due to face a disciplinary hearing, but was then
acquitted by the head of the army's southern command. Solicitor
Louise Christian, who represents the Miller family, said the killing
was "essentially murder of a civilian by a soldier".
'Rules of engagement'
She said technically it was "a war crime" and as such should be
prosecuted under the Geneva Conventions Act. Ms Christian added:
"We want the Attorney General to institute proceedings under Section
One of the Geneva Conventions Act and we want the foreign secretary
to demand his (the perpetrator's) extradition. "
Alternatively, we want the foreign secretary
to insist on there being an effective prosecution and investigation
in Israel, including looking at soldiers in the command structure
above Lieutenant Heib." The Israeli foreign minister has previously
conceded to his British counterpart Jack Straw that the Israeli
Defence Force (IDF) was responsible for the death of father-of-two,
the inquest heard.
But the admission came with the caveat
it was believed the soldiers had been acting under the rules of
engagement.
The Israeli Embassy in London said in a
statement after the inquest: "After a very thorough investigation
using laboratories in Israel and abroad and after reviewing all
the available evidence, it was not possible to reach a reliable
conclusion that could provide a basis for proceedings under criminal
law." A spokesperson for the attorney general said: "The attorney
general has asked to see a full report of the inquest, including
the evidence that was given so he may consider the implications
of the verdict."
Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, who met the
family a month after the murder, has agreed to meet them again.
A family spokesman said: "His office has
said with such short notice they have been unable to schedule a
meeting, and he won't be able to meet them until the end of April
at the earliest. "There is a willingness there, but no time or date."
Source: BBC News http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/devon/4886410.stm
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