Israel probes killing of Hind Rajab, Palestinian Paramedics

Israel’s military on Wednesday announced its first criminal investigations into troop conduct in the war in Gaza, focusing on the killings of 5-year-old Hind Rajab and her family and of 15 Palestinian paramedics.
The military said it would not launch criminal investigations into three other attacks that killed aid workers from World Central Kitchen and Doctors Without Borders. Its statement said it had completed reviews of 150 incidents of troop conduct in Gaza and made decisions on the five cases.

The military statement did not mention the many other high-profile killings that Israel has pledged to investigate throughout the war. It did not mention the Israeli strikes on a hospital in southern Gaza that killed five journalists in August 2025, including Mariam Dagga, a visual journalist who freelanced for the AP and other news organisations.

Both the killing of Rajab and her family, trapped in a vehicle and pleading for help by phone in February 2024, and the killing of 15 medics in May 2025 drew international outcry. Rajab’s grandmother, also named Hind Rajab, told The Associated Press by phone that the Israeli investigation is not enough, and called for an international probe into the killing of her granddaughter and all of the hundreds of children killed in Gaza during the war. “An international investigation is required to uncover the truth and hold all those responsible accountable,” she said. “We call for justice, not only for Hind, but for all Gaza children.”

The military’s statement comes nearly three years after the war began. Israeli strikes continue in Gaza despite a fragile ceasefire. The military admitted to firing at the family car carrying Rajab, four of her cousins and her aunt and uncle as they fled an Israeli invasion of Gaza City.

As gunfire sprayed around them, Rajab’s cousin, 15-year-old Layan Hamada, called the Palestinian Red Crescent paramedic centre, telling them that a tank was approaching and her family had been killed. Seconds later, more gunshots were heard, and Layan’s screaming stopped, according to the Red Crescent recording of the call.

Palestinian paramedics dispatched an ambulance to rescue Rajab, the sole survivor, and stayed on the line until contact was lost. 
Rajab, her five relatives and two medics from the ambulance were found dead 12 days later.