Hind Rajab: Six-Year-Old Killed in Gaza After Calling for Help
Six-year-old Hind Rajab survived the killing of her relatives in a car in Gaza, called the Palestinian Red Crescent for help, and was killed along with the two paramedics dispatched to rescue her. A Forensic Architecture investigation (June 2024) counted 335 bullet holes in the car and concluded an Israeli tank likely fired them; in August 2026 the IDF acknowledged its troops fired on the vehicle.
On January 29, 2024, six-year-old Hind Rajab was in a car with six relatives in the Tal al-Zaatar neighborhood of Gaza City. Israeli tank fire killed all of her relatives. Hind survived and called the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS), remaining on the phone with their dispatcher for hours. She could be heard crying, telling the dispatcher she was scared and that everyone else in the car was dead.
The PRCS dispatched paramedics Yusuf Zeino and Ahmed al-Madhoun. As their ambulance neared the car, all communication was lost. Both paramedics were killed. Their ambulance was later found destroyed near Hind's vehicle.
Hind's body and those of her relatives were recovered on February 10, 2024, after Israeli forces withdrew from the area — twelve days after she made her last call for help. A Forensic Architecture investigation published in June 2024 counted 335 bullet holes in the car and placed an Israeli tank 13–23 metres away when shots were fired.
The IDF initially said its forces were "not present near the vehicle or within firing range." On August 19, 2026, the IDF reversed this, stating that "IDF troops fired at a vehicle that was approaching them," and the Military Police Criminal Investigation Division opened a criminal investigation, citing apparent failures in coordinating the ambulance's movement.
Hind Rajab became one of the most widely reported civilian deaths of the conflict. A Belgium-based advocacy group, the Hind Rajab Foundation, was later founded and named after her. Her case has been cited in multiple international legal proceedings and human rights reports on civilian casualties in Gaza.