The parents of a pro-Palestinian activist who died during a protest in Gaza 2003 have arrived in Haifa to pursue a civil court case against the state of Israel.

The second stage of the Rachel Corrie case opened yesterday in Haifa’s district court. The American activist died aged 23 in March 2003 after being crushed by an IDF bulldozer.

She had come to Rafah at the height of the Palestinian intifada with the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign, to demonstrate against the demolition of houses.

An Israeli military investigation into what happened said that Ms Corrie had died during an armed conflict and that the Israeli soldiers were not to blame. It also claimed negligence on Ms Corrie’s part.

It found that the bulldozer driver had not seen Ms Corrie as she had been hidden from view by dirt the machine had thrown up. She was struck by slabs of concrete, which killed her.

Cindy and Craig Corrie of Olympia, Washington, claim that the investigation was not comprehensive enough and that their daughter’s death was intentional.

Their lawyer, Hussein Abu Hussein, said: "It is clear that the army investigation was very far from being sufficient, thorough or impartial."

In 2007 the Corrie’s tried to sue bulldozer manufacturer Caterpillar. They said the company knew that it sold the bulldozers to Israel for “human rights violations.”