Israeli soldierjailed for killing activist

AN Israeli soldier was jailed for eight years yesterday for killing a British activist acting as a human shield in the Gaza Strip.

Student Tom Hurndall, 22, died after he was shot in the head by a trained marksman during an army operation in April 2003.

Following a hard-fought campaign by his family, ex-sergeant Taysir Hayb was convicted at an Israeli military court of manslaughter and yesterday sentenced to eight years in prison.

Hayb is the first soldier to be convicted over the death of a foreign national during the latest wave of Israeli-Palestinian violence.

Yesterday’s sentence left the family “shell-shocked”, according to his sister Sophie Hurndall.

She believes the soldier who killed her brother from an Israeli army watchtower, using a sniper rifle, should have been jailed for life for murder.

But compared with the way other civilian deaths were treated in Israel, the result was “ground-breaking”, she said.

An official inquiry only came about as a result of intense pressure brought to bear by the world’s media, pressure from the family and the British government.

Initially, the Israeli army had denied he had been shot by a soldier from an army watchtower.

However, witnesses said Mr Hurndall was hit by a rifle bullet while trying to shield young children. He was left in a coma and died nine months later.

Ms Hurndall, 25, from Kensington, west London, said: “It has become clear to us the investigation process taking place when internationals are shot is a completely flawed and corrupt system and needs to be changed.”