The Israeli government are to award £1.75 million in compensation to the family of a British filmmaker who was shot dead by Israeli troops in 2003.

James Miller, 34, a husband and father to two young children, was killed by soldiers patrolling a security zone in the border region between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.

The payout to Mr Millers’ widow and children comes after a five year campaign of legal pressure on the government of Israel to accept accountability for the fatal shooting. The soldier responsible for killing Mr Miller, Lieutenant Hib al-Heib, was cleared by an army inquiry who decided the soldiers on patrol that day had not acted beyond their orders. Lieutenant Hib al-Heib was subsequently promoted to the rank of Captain.

The family of Mr Miller decided to pursue the case, refusing to accept the findings of the inquiry. They filed a suit for £3 million against the State of Israel for murder and in 2006 a British inquest ruled that the killing was murder.

Mr Miller’s brother, John revealed that the family had spent more than £1 million recovering his brother’s body, carrying out the autopsy and employing expert witnesses to follow the case. The family sued for £3 million based on loss of earnings but said, “It has never really been about the money.”

John Miller said, “Its five years since this happened. You have to reach a point where there’s a lot to be said for settling because it takes up an incredible amount of time and effort. My parents are both retired and should be enjoying life. They have seen the film of James being killed more than 500 times, and that’s really not ideal for their situation and not the way to spend their retirement.”

He added, “We are quite motivated to end this. I don’t imagine we would do it regardless of money, but it certainly isn’t the real issue. It’s about being able to move on five years later rather than having the prospect of another few years in court.”

Officials in Jerusalem had initially in 2005, decided not to press criminal charges against those involved due to lack of sufficient evidence. Instead a disciplinary hearing was organised for illegal use of a firearm. An Israeli army inquiry concluded that Mr Miller’s death was a ‘tragic accident’.

An army spokesman claimed the filmmaker had, “walked right into the middle of an ongoing battle, with heavy exchanges of fire between Israeli soldiers and Palestinian gunmen in bad light.”

However, John Miller revealed the footage that the victim had recorded that night told a different story. He said, “My brother was filmed going out of the building holding a torch which he was shining on a white flag. The film shows my brother, reporter Saira Shah and another journalist walking from the building shouting they were British journalists in English and Arabic. They reach a point where a shot is fired and it’s silent apart from he shot.”

He goes on to say, “They stand still, holding the flag. Then 10 to 15 seconds later there is another shot, the one that killed my brother. You see the flag dropped and a great deal of commotion and shouting. There were no other shots except for those two and I believe they both came from the Israeli side” he concluded.