Six-year-old Palestinian Girl killed amidst Israeli fire
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A six-year-old Palestinian girl, Hind Rajab, who had gone missing following an attack on her family's car in the conflict-ridden Gaza, has been found dead, as confirmed by Palestinian health ministry officials.
The family attributes her death to Israeli forces.
The devastating episode unfolded two weeks ago when the Rajab family's car faced gunfire while attempting to escape advancing Israeli forces in the besieged Gaza Strip. Hind Rajab was last seen amidst deceased relatives in a trapped vehicle during their city escape.
On Saturday, the grim discovery of Hind's lifeless body was made by family members as they searched for the car in Gaza City's Tel al-Hawa area, near a petrol station where it had last been spotted. The family was able to access the location after Israeli forces withdrew in the early hours of the day, according to Baha Hamada, the girl's grandfather. He expressed the tragic outcome, stating, "Hind and everyone else in the car is martyred."
The health ministry in Gaza officially confirmed Hind Rajab's death, attributing it to the actions of Israeli occupation forces. The ministry's statement specified that she, along with others in the car, was killed outside the petrol station in Tel al-Hawa, reported AFP.
Earlier reports from the family revealed that they unintentionally found themselves in the path of Israeli tanks and became targets of gunfire as they attempted to flee the perilous situation.
Despite the devastating toll on civilians, including women and children, during the recent conflict in Gaza, the Israeli military has not provided comments on the incident. The ongoing conflict escalated following an unprecedented attack by a Palestinian militant group on Israel on October 7, resulting in the deaths of about 1,160 people.
In response, Israel launched a massive military offensive in Gaza that so far killed at least 27,947 people, according to the territory's health ministry.