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Mrs Hurndall at home with photos of Tom |
Mother hits out at Israeli army culture
Inquest of shot activist to begin
THE mother of Tom Hurndall, the Tufnell Park student killed
by an Israeli sniper three years ago, is calling for the coroner
investigating her son’s death to denounce the Israeli justice
system.
Jocelyn Hurndall, (pictured) a former teacher from Burghley
Road, said: “We are hoping the coroner will comment on
the poor quality of the Israeli investigation into Tom’s
death – and the way that soldiers are encouraged to shoot
civilians without any accountability.
“It was a non-investigation. There was an inability and
a lack of motivation to collect evidence and no rigorous effort
made to interview witnesses. The only reason a soldier was tried
was because Tom has a family who pursued it to the ‘nth’
degree.”
The four-day inquest into Mr Hurndall’s death is due to
begin at St Pancras Coroner’s Court on Monday – almost
exactly three years after the 22-year-old was shot in the head
while defending children from sniper fire in the Palestinian
town of Rafah in Gaza.
Mr Hurndall, who suffered severe brain injuries as a result
of the shooting, died at the Royal Hospital for Neuro-Disability
in Putney in January 2004.
Israeli authorities have declined a request from the coroner’s
office to participate in the inquest, saying they have already
prosecuted and convicted a soldier, Sergeant Idier Wahid Taysir,
for Mr Hurndall’s death.
But Mrs Hurndall said: “We are concerned with the culture
of impunity within which the soldier was working within the
Israeli Defence Force. He was following orders.”
She added: “The truth can only be achieved if the Israelis
participate and participate wholeheartedly. I am very much hoping
that they will change their minds and the summons will reach
them.”
Asked whether the family, who will be represented by Michael
Mansfield QC next week, could achieve a level of closure after
the inquest, Mrs Hurndall said: “I don’t believe in
closure.
“Tom was a young man of extraordinary moral, emotional
and physical courage.
“There is no point at which I will be able to say this
is it and move on.” |
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