As Israel admits to killing Hind Rajab, her family seeks justice for all Gaza children

Israel’s military has announced its first criminal investigations into troop conduct in Gaza, focusing on two incidents that sparked international outrage: the killing of five-year-old Hind Rajab and her family, and the deaths of 15 Palestinian paramedics.

Hind was trapped in a car with her dead relatives during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City in February 2024. She remained on the phone with Palestinian Red Crescent staff, pleading for help, before contact was lost.

The Israeli military has now acknowledged that its troops fired at both the car carrying Hind and the ambulance sent to rescue her, killing two paramedics. Hind, five of her relatives and the two medics were found dead 12 days later, the Wire reported.

Hind’s grandmother said an Israeli investigation alone would not be sufficient and called for an independent international inquiry to establish the truth and hold those responsible accountable. The Palestinian Red Crescent also demanded an international investigation, while the Belgium-based Hind Rajab Foundation dismissed the military probe as an attempt to shield those responsible, AP reported.

The investigations will be handled by military investigators, who will submit their findings to military prosecutors. The military advocate general will then decide whether to continue the investigation, bring charges against soldiers or close the cases.

However, Israeli rights advocate Tal Steiner of HaMoked said any action could take a long time, if it happened at all. She noted that indictments against Israeli soldiers over alleged abuses involving Palestinians have been rare since the war began in October 2023.

The other investigation concerns the killing of 15 Palestinian paramedics in March 2025, after which Israeli troops allegedly buried their bodies in a mass grave. Both incidents have drawn widespread international condemnation.

Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, according to the territory’s Health Ministry. Rights groups and UN bodies have accused Israel of genocide and numerous war crimes, including indiscriminate attacks and the deliberate killing of civilians. Israel has rejected these accusations, maintaining that its own justice system is capable of investigating and addressing any misconduct by its troops.