The Israeli military admitted on Wednesday its troops had opened fire on a car carrying five-year-old Hind Rajab and six family members in Gaza in 2024, saying it had ordered a criminal investigation into the killing. The killing of Hind and her family was one of the most high profile of a series of incidents involving civilian casualties during the first months of the Gaza conflict which prompted international outrage. Hind died after a desperate three-hour phone call to the Palestinian Red Crescent on 29 January 2024 in which she pleaded for rescue.
The family’s Kia Picanto car had been hit as the family sought to flee a new Israeli offensive into Gaza City. All the other passengers were also killed. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) repeatedly denied its troops had been present in the area near the incident, but investigations by media and others found evidence that strongly suggested nearby Israeli tanks were responsible.
Palestinian paramedics dispatched an ambulance to rescue Hind and stayed on the line until contact was lost, but the ambulance too came under fire, killing two medics. The bodies of the casualties were only retrieved 12 days later when Israeli troops withdrew. The IDF also admitted Wednesday that troops had fired on the ambulance.
Criminal misconduct investigations into Israeli troops over the killing of Palestinians rarely lead to convictions. The IDF published reviews on Wednesday into four other high-profile incidents in Gaza, saying it was launching a criminal investigation into the killing in near the southern city of Rafah of 15 Palestinian medics and humanitarian personnel in March 2025. Troops lying in ambush for Hamas militants initially shot at an ambulance that was trying to retrieve casualties from an Israeli offensive, then fired on a series of emergency vehicles which approached their positions, according to phone footage and the sole survivor of the shootings.
The soldiers then bulldozed over the bodies and vehicles, burying them in a mass grave. UN and rescue workers were only able to reach the site a week later. Driving their clearly marked vehicles.
On their way to save lives. This should never have happened,” said Jonathan Whittall, a UN official who helped recover the bodies. The Israeli military initially said it had opened fire because the vehicles were “advancing suspiciously” without headlights or emergency signals.
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