What Happened to Hind Rajab, and Why Israel's Military Is Now Investigating
The Israeli army has ordered a criminal investigation into the killing of six-year-old Palestinian girl Hind Rajab, several of her family members, and two ambulance workers in Gaza City in January 2024. This is the first time the Israeli military, known as the IDF, has admitted that its soldiers opened fire on the vehicle carrying them. BBC
The IDF said the investigation was launched after a review of the incident. The military said it found possible failures in how it coordinated with the Palestine Red Crescent, the organization that had sent an ambulance to rescue Hind. BBC This is a reversal. Earlier, the IDF said its initial investigation suggested no Israeli troops had been in the area at the time. BBC Israel's army also said it did not contact the Palestine Red Crescent about the incident. AP via Facebook
Hind Rajab was one of seven family members in a vehicle that came under Israeli fire in January 2024 as they tried to flee bombing during the war in Gaza. BBC She survived the initial attack, which killed several relatives. In the hours that followed, she answered a phone call from the Palestinian Red Crescent Society and stayed on the line with paramedics for about three hours, asking to be rescued. Washington Post
An ambulance sent to reach Hind was also shelled. The bodies of Hind, her family members, and the two ambulance crew members were found days later. BBC The Washington Post published a detailed investigation reconstructing the timeline using phone records and on-the-ground reporting. Washington Post
The IDF probe goes beyond the Rajab case. The Israeli military said it would open criminal investigations into the killings of Hind Rajab and her family, and separately into the killings of 15 Palestinian ambulance workers. AP According to the Israeli Military Advocate General's office — the branch of the military that handles legal matters — fourteen criminal investigations have been ordered relating to thirty-six separate incidents in which Palestinians were killed. IDF
UN human rights experts warned on 19 July 2024 that the killing of Hind Rajab, her family, and the two paramedics may amount to a war crime. OHCHR A war crime is a serious violation of the rules of armed conflict — rules designed to protect civilians, medical workers, and others who are not fighting. That warning came before the IDF admitted its involvement and decided to move from a preliminary review to a formal criminal investigation.
The shift from denial to criminal probe carries weight on several levels. The IDF's initial position, that no troops were in the area, has been formally replaced by an acknowledgment that Israeli fire struck the vehicle. The decision to launch a criminal investigation means the military's own fact-finding turned up concerns serious enough to go beyond an internal review. Think of it like a company's internal audit finding enough red flags that it hands the matter to law enforcement. The specific issue the IDF identified — failures in coordinating the Red Crescent ambulance — touches on international rules that require armies to protect medical workers and their vehicles during war.
The broader context here involves how the IDF handles accusations of wrongdoing during the Gaza war. The Military Advocate General's corps acts as the military's internal legal authority. It decides which complaints get a criminal investigation and which are handled through less formal reviews. The fourteen investigations covering thirty-six incidents give a sense of how many cases have been considered serious enough for criminal scrutiny, though the numbers do not tell us what the outcomes will be. Including the Rajab case and the paramedic killings in this group signals that the military's legal office believes there is enough evidence to move beyond a first-look review in at least these cases.
For international observers, this investigation opens a process that has historically attracted attention from the International Criminal Court, which has been examining possible war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territories. The UN experts' July 2024 warning set a human rights benchmark that the IDF's internal process will now be measured against. Whether the investigation leads to formal charges or closes without them will be closely watched by accountability advocates and by the IDF's own legal and diplomatic partners.
