Key facts
- The Israeli military admitted its troops fired on a car carrying Hind Rajab and her family in Gaza in 2024.
- Hind Rajab and six family members were killed in the incident.
- An ambulance sent to rescue Hind also came under fire, killing two medics.
- The Israeli military has launched a criminal investigation into the killing of Hind Rajab and her family.
- The military also reviewed other incidents, including the killing of 15 Palestinian medics and humanitarian personnel, and airstrikes on World Central Kitchen vehicles.
The Israeli military has admitted that its troops opened fire on a car carrying five-year-old Hind Rajab and six family members in Gaza in January 2024, an incident that resulted in the deaths of all occupants. The military announced on Wednesday that it has ordered a criminal investigation into the killings.
Hind Rajab died after a three-hour phone call to the Palestinian Red Crescent pleading for rescue, as the family's car was hit during an Israeli offensive into Gaza City. Investigations by media outlets had previously suggested that Israeli tanks were responsible, contradicting initial IDF statements that troops were not in the area.
Following the incident with Hind's car, a Palestinian ambulance dispatched to rescue her also came under fire, killing two medics. The IDF admitted on Wednesday that troops had fired on the ambulance, citing alleged failures in the coordination of its movement. The military stated it has decided to initiate a criminal investigation into this incident by the military police criminal investigation division.
The IDF also published reviews of four other high-profile incidents in Gaza, including launching a criminal investigation into the killing of 15 Palestinian medics and humanitarian personnel near Rafah in March 2025. However, the military decided not to open a criminal investigation into the April 2024 airstrikes that hit a convoy of World Central Kitchen vehicles, killing seven humanitarian workers. The IDF stated it mistook individuals in the convoy for Hamas operatives and that the convoy deviated from its coordinated route, concluding that commanders' decisions did not raise reasonable suspicion of criminal misconduct.
Rights organizations and international bodies have criticized the Israeli military's investigations, citing a "pervasive climate of impunity" and a low rate of convictions for alleged misconduct. The UN has described a "pervasive climate of impunity" by Israel in occupied Palestine. The IDF maintains it does not deliberately target civilians and accuses Hamas of using civilians as shields.