The Israeli military has acknowledged for the first time that its soldiers fired at a vehicle carrying five-year-old Palestinian girl Hind Rajab, who was killed in Gaza in 2024 along with six members of her family.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Wednesday that it would launch a criminal investigation into the deaths of Hind, her relatives and two paramedics who were killed while attempting to rescue her. The military will also investigate the deaths of 15 Palestinians, including medical workers and a United Nations employee, who were killed in a separate incident in southern Gaza in March 2025, according to BBC News.
Hind was travelling with her family in Gaza City’s Tel al-Hawa neighbourhood when their car came under fire. She survived the initial attack and managed to answer a telephone call from operators at the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS).
For several hours, the frightened child pleaded for help. She told the operators that Israeli tanks were close to the vehicle and moving towards her. The Red Crescent workers urged her to hide beneath the seats and remain out of sight.
“She was scared,” operator Rana Faqih later told the BBC. Hind asked how far away Faqih’s home was and repeatedly begged someone to come and save her.
After about three hours, an ambulance was granted permission to approach the area. Paramedics Yusuf al-Zeino and Ahmed al-Madhoun later informed the operators that they were nearing Hind’s location and were about to undergo an Israeli security check. It was the last communication received from them.
The PRCS said the ambulance was struck by Israeli forces, killing both paramedics. Hind’s body was found several days later, together with the bodies of her relatives.
The IDF initially claimed that none of its soldiers had been operating in the area at the time. It later acknowledged that its forces had conducted operations in nearby neighbourhoods, including Tel al-Hawa.
In its latest statement, the military said its review found that Israeli troops had fired at a vehicle travelling against instructions issued by the IDF. It said the ambulance movement had also involved alleged coordination failures and that these circumstances had led to the decision to open a criminal inquiry.
Hind’s death sparked international outrage after the recording of her desperate call was broadcast around the world. The United Nations later referred to the case in a commission of inquiry that accused Israel of possible war crimes. Israel rejects such accusations.
Her story has also been portrayed in The Voice of Hind Rajab, an Oscar-nominated film.
The second investigation concerns the deaths of 15 Palestinians in Rafah on 23 March 2025. An Israeli unit fired on ambulances, a fire engine and a clearly marked UN vehicle responding to an emergency. The victims’ bodies were discovered a week later in shallow graves beside the damaged vehicles.
The IDF first said the vehicles had appeared suspicious because they were travelling at night without headlights or emergency lights. It later admitted that this account was mistaken after video from a dead paramedic’s phone showed the convoy’s emergency lights were operating.
The military said its review had found “reasonable suspicion of criminal misconduct”.
However, the IDF said there was no basis for criminal investigations into three other cases, including the deaths of seven World Central Kitchen workers and four Médecins Sans Frontières employees.
The Israeli military is under growing international pressure to demonstrate that it investigates alleged abuses by its own forces. Israeli human rights organisations argue that such investigations rarely result in indictments or serious punishment.
