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Wednesday, March 09, 2005
Autopsy indicates cameraman was killed by Israelis
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By Justin Huggler in Jerusalem
09 May 2003
The findings of an Israeli autopsy released yesterday indicate that an award-winning British television cameraman killed last week was shot dead by Israeli soldiers – and not by Palestinian gunmen, as the Israeli army has suggested
Autopsy indicates cameraman was killed by Israelis
Thu, May 08, 2003
Israeli troops shot British journalist in neck: autopsy
JERUSALEM (AFP) - An autopsy has found that British television journalist James Miller who died last week in the southern Gaza Strip (news - web sites) was shot in the neck by Israeli troops, public radio reported.
The autopsy carried out at Abu Khabir forensic institute near Tel Aviv with a British doctor present found that the freelance journalist was hit last Friday by an M-16 assault rifle bullet fired by soldiers facing him, it said.
The journalist, wearing a helmet and bullet-proof vest, was struck in the neck. He was treated on the scene by soldiers before being evacuated by helicopter to an army camp, where he died.
A senior Israeli officer said Sunday that Miller could have been shot from behind by Palestinian gunfire.
Miller, 35, was shot in the town of Rafah near Egypt's border as he was filming a stand-up for a documentary he was making on the army's destruction of hundreds of homes of militants in the Palestinian territories.
An army spokesman expressed "regret" at the death, but pointed out Miller had "taken great risks by being in a virtual war zone". The army and Palestinian militants were trading gunfire during a house demolition, he said.
The Briton was the fourth journalist killed by the Israeli army since the September 2000 outbreak of the Palestinian uprising against occupation.
Israeli troops shot British journalist in neck: autopsy
Israel won't prosecute officer suspected in British journalist's death
Wed, Mar 09, 2005
JERUSALEM (AFP) - The Israeli army said it would not prosecute an officer thought responsible for the killing of a British journalist in the Gaza Strip (news - web sites) nearly two years ago, saying there was no evidence on which to convict him.
The decision, announced Wednesday by military advocate general Avihai Mandelblitt, was taken following an 18-month military police investigation into the circumstances surrounding the fatal shooting of 35-year-old James Miller in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah in May 2003.
Although the report chastised the commanding officer at the site for "allegedly firing his weapon in breach of the IDF (Israel Defence Forces) rules of engagement", it did not find any link with the killing of Miller, a statement from the army said.
"It is not legally possible to link this shooting to the gunshot sustained by Mr Miller," the statement said.
"Analysis of the military police dossier, particularly the indisputable forensic evidence -- namely the ballistic tests and audio analysis -- leads to the conclusion that the evidence available does not provide a reasonable chance for conviction as required under criminal law," it said.
Mandelblitt presented the conclusions of the investigation to Miller's family himself on Wednesday in Tel Aviv.
Miller, an award-winning television journalist, was shot dead in the town of Rafah near the Egyptian border as he was filming a stand-up for a documentary on the army's destruction of hundreds of homes in the Palestinian territories.
His crew claimed they were carrying a white flag and identified themselves as British media to troops in the area, but as they left a Palestinian home they were fired upon and a bullet struck Miller in the neck, between his helmet and bullet-proof vest.
An autopsy carried out at Abu Khabir forensic institute near Tel Aviv with a British doctor present found that the freelance journalist was hit by a bullet from an M-16 assault rifle fired by soldiers facing him.
The army expressed regret over the incident but pointed out that the Briton had "taken great risks by being in a virtual war zone".
Following the shooting, Mandelblitt ordered a full criminal investigation, and in the report, he commended the military police for investing "unprecedented efforts", including ballistic tests, audio and satellite imagery analysis, and extensive lie-detector testing.
Although a criminal indictment "cannot be substantiated in this case", "harsh command measures" would be taken against the officer in question for misuse of his weapon, the army said.
Israel won't prosecute officer suspected in British journalist's death
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Israeli officer who killed UK journalist faces minor charges
Chris McGreal in Jerusalem
Thursday March 10, 2005
The Guardian
The Israeli army has told the family of a British journalist killed in the Gaza Strip that the soldier responsible will face only minor disciplinary charges, despite the investigators' suspicion that he illegally shot James Miller two years ago.
Miller's widow Sophy said the family intended to bring a civil action for damages against the Israeli army and to seek a judicial review of the decision not to prosecute the soldier for murder.
"I think to keep people waiting for two years only to deliver nothing is an outrage," she said.
"They presented it as if they have gone to every length to secure the truth, that they've left no stone unturned, but at the same time failed to even secure the evidence the night James was killed."
Miller, an award-winning film producer and cameraman, was shot dead in Rafah refugee camp as he and the rest of a documentary team tried to pass by an armoured vehicle.
He was waving a white flag and shouting that he was a journalist, but it was dark. The armoured vehicle's commander, a lieutenant who has not been named, fired 11 bullets, two of which struck Miller in the neck.
In its first account of the killing the army said the armoured vehicle was under fire at the time, but video footage showed this to be untrue. The army altered its version twice more, effectively shifting responsibility to the victim, but these accounts were also shown to be false.
The Miller family describes the killing as murder and accuses the army of ignoring, destroying or sabotaging evidence.
Crucially, the soldiers in the vehicle were not asked to hand in their weapons for inspection until a month after the killing, and there is some evidence that the guns may have been swapped.
Yesterday the army said the soldier concerned would not face more serious charges because of a lack of ballistics evidence.
Mrs Miller said: "On the night he died there was a whole army unit who knew who killed him. If they'd been serious to get to the truth the guns would have been surrendered that night and not a month later.
"And now when they say the reason they can't bring a prosecution is because the ballistics evidence doesn't match, what does that tell you?"
The Miller family met the advocate general, Brigadier General Avichai Mandelblit, in Tel Aviv yesterday. He admitted that the lieutenant's account was inconsistent and that the soldiers knew there were journalists there when he opened fire.
But Gen Mandelblit said the army was prepared to take disciplinary action against the lieutenant only for breaching the rules of engagement and "for his conduct during the investigation", which may mean lying to investigators.
Mrs Miller said the army investigators had expressed a strong suspicion that the lieutenant was guilty of illegally killing her husband.
"We still have prosecutors who suspect and continue to suspect a commanding officer and who will only bring disciplinary measures because of an initial flawed investigative process," she added.
Israeli officer who killed UK journalist faces minor charges
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