Israel admits troops fired on Hind Rajab’s car, opens criminal probe
New findings reverse Israeli account that troops were not within firing range of car
Dubai: The Israeli military has acknowledged for the first time that its troops opened fire on the car carrying five-year-old Hind Rajab in Gaza, reversing its earlier account of the incident and announcing a criminal investigation into her 2024 killing.
Hind’s death became one of the most widely known cases of the Gaza war after recordings emerged of the terrified child pleading for help during an hours-long telephone call with Palestinian emergency workers.
Her body was recovered 12 days later from a bullet-riddled car in Gaza City. Six relatives and two Palestinian Red Crescent paramedics sent to rescue her were also killed.
“The findings of the examination indicate that IDF troops fired at a vehicle that was approaching them,” the Israeli military said on Wednesday.
What happened to Hind Rajab?
January 29, 2024: Five-year-old Hind was travelling with relatives attempting to flee Gaza City during an Israeli advance.
Their vehicle came under fire. The Israeli military now says its troops fired at the car and that five occupants were killed, while Hind and her cousin Layan Hamada initially survived.
Hind and Layan contacted the Palestinian Red Crescent, pleading for help. Recordings of the calls later drew worldwide attention.
An ambulance carrying two Red Crescent paramedics was dispatched after its movement was coordinated to reach them.
According to allegations cited by the Israeli military, a shell was fired towards the ambulance when it arrived, killing both paramedics.
Twelve days later, Hind’s body was recovered from the bullet-riddled car along with the bodies of her relatives.
Her story was portrayed in The Voice of Hind Rajab, which was nominated for an Oscar in 2026.
Israel’s military previously said its forces were not near the vehicle or within firing range. It now acknowledges its troops fired at the vehicle and has opened a criminal investigation.
The acknowledgement marks a significant shift from the military’s previous position. Months after Hind’s death, the Israel Defense Forces said a preliminary investigation had found its forces were “not present near the vehicle or within firing range”, according to CNN.
The military said its latest review found that troops fired at the vehicle after it approached them while travelling contrary to advance instructions given to residents in the area.
It said alleged failures in coordinating the movement of a Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance sent to evacuate the casualties were among the reasons it had now ordered an investigation by the Military Police Criminal Investigation Division.
According to allegations cited by the military, a shell was fired towards the ambulance when it reached the scene, killing the two paramedics inside.
Calls for accountability
Recordings of Hind’s emergency call circulated around the world and prompted international outrage and demands for an independent investigation.
Her story was later portrayed in The Voice of Hind Rajab, which was nominated for an Oscar in 2026.
The decision to investigate her death forms part of the Israeli military’s first comprehensive review of alleged wrongdoing during the Gaza war, according to CNN.
The IDF General Staff’s Fact Finding and Assessment Mechanism completed inquiries into 150 incidents, which were referred to the military’s top legal authority to determine whether criminal investigations were warranted.
Decisions in five cases were made public on Wednesday.
Second criminal investigation
The military also ordered a criminal investigation into the killing of 15 Palestinians, including medics and humanitarian personnel, in southern Gaza in March 2025.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said at the time that a team of first responders was killed by Israeli forces on March 23 and that other emergency and aid teams came under fire over several hours while searching for missing colleagues.
Those killed included eight Palestinian Red Crescent staff, six members of Gaza’s civil defence agency and one employee of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees.
Their bodies were later discovered buried near Rafah in what the UN described as a mass grave.
The Israeli military said three shooting incidents involving a fire truck, ambulances and a UN vehicle occurred during an ambush targeting Hamas operatives.
It acknowledged that 15 Palestinians, including medical personnel and paramedics, were killed, while claiming six of those killed belonged to Hamas.
The military also said troops subsequently decided to “crush the vehicles and to cover the bodies with metal mesh.”
Following its review, the military said the firing raised a “reasonable suspicion of criminal misconduct” and ordered a criminal investigation.
No probes in three other cases
The military decided against launching criminal investigations into three other high-profile incidents reviewed as part of the process, including cases involving employees of World Central Kitchen and Doctors Without Borders (MSF).
Those incidents had also attracted international scrutiny over Israeli military conduct in Gaza.
The Hind Rajab investigation, however, carries particular significance because the military’s latest findings alter a central element of its previous account.
More than two years after Hind was killed, the Israeli military now acknowledges that its troops fired at the vehicle carrying her.
The criminal investigation will seek to establish whether criminal misconduct occurred in an incident that became one of the most powerful symbols of the war’s toll on Gaza’s children.
— With inputs from AFP
