Tom Hurndall

Photographer and Peace Activist

Tom Hurndall was a British photographer, peace activist, and student of photography at Manchester Metropolitan University. He became known for his involvement with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), an organization focused on nonviolent resistance to the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories.

On this anniversary of Tom’s killing, we celebrate this young man’s life and see it as a beacon, showing the way for the next generation of peace activists and conflict photographers.

Hurndall traveled to the Middle East in early 2003, initially joining the "human shields" in Iraq before the invasion, and later moved to Jordan to help with medical aid for Iraqi refugees. His journey then took him to the Gaza Strip, where he aimed to document the living conditions of Palestinians under occupation.

On April 11, 2003, in Rafah, Gaza, Tom Hurndall was shot in the head by an Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) sniper while he was attempting to rescue Palestinian children from gunfire. He was wearing a bright orange jacket identifying him as an international volunteer, which is internationally recognized for non-combatants. Hurndall was left in a coma and never regained consciousness; he died on January 13, 2004, in a London hospital.

Following his death, his family campaigned for justice, leading to the arrest and conviction of the sniper, Taysir Hayb, who was sentenced to eight years in prison for manslaughter and obstruction of justice in 2005. His story is documented in books like "The Only House Left Standing: The Middle East Journals of Tom Hurndall" and "Defy the Stars: The Life and Tragic Death of Tom Hurndall" by his mother, Jocelyn Hurndall.

Tom Hurndall's photographs and journal entries provide insights into the conflict and the humanitarian situation in the region. His legacy continues through various memorials, publications of his work, and the ongoing activities of the Tom Hurndall Memorial Lecture Group, which focuses on the historical, political, and cultural struggles in Palestine.

Picture dated 11 April 2003 shows a friend of 21-year-old Briton Thomas Hurndall showing his passport as doctors try to save his live at a Rafah hospital. Tom, an activist with the Palestinian-led International Solidarity Movement who had been in a coma and brain dead since being shot by an Israeli soldier, died 13 January 2004 at the specialist Royal Hospital, southwest London.

Never Forget. —He died on this day, 21 years ago.

RAFAH, Picture dated 11 April 2003 shows Tom Hurndall, 22, a British activist with the Palestinian-led International Solidarity Movement, being treated at a hospital in Rafah after he was hit in the head and critically wounded by sniper fire in the Rafah refugee camp. Tom, who had been in a coma and brain dead since being shot by an Israeli soldier, died 13 January 2004 at the specialist Royal Hospital, southwest London.

CASTINA, ISRAEL: Israeli Army Sergeant Taysir Wahid is led 27 June 2005 out of Castina military court in southern Israel after being found guilty on all charges of the shooting of Tom Hurndall, a 22-year-old British activist with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM). Wahid, a Bedouin who can neither read nor write Hebrew, was convicted of a total of six charges, including obstructing justice and providing false testimony as well as conduct unbecoming a soldier. Hurndall was shot in the head in the Rafah refugee camp in April 2003 and died later in January 2004 in a London hospital after spending nine months in a persistent vegetative state.

RAFAH REFUGEE CAMP, GAZA STRIP - JANUARY 16: A Palestinian girl kisses a poster in memory of British peace activist Thomas Hurndall on January 16, 2004 in Rafah refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip. Hurndall's family announced Wednesday Jan. 14, 2004 that he had died, nine months after he was shot in the head by an Israeli Defence Force soldier, leaving him in a permanent vegetative state.