Hind Rajab's mother, Wissam Hamada, clung to hope for 12 days after her five-year-old daughter and six other family members became trapped in the middle of an Israeli military operation in Gaza city – until their bodies were found in a car riddled with 335 bullets.
Now she questions why it took Israel 934 days to acknowledge its troops were responsible, after the military announced on Wednesday that it was launching a criminal investigation into the deaths on January 29, 2024.
“After more than two years and everything that has been said about my daughter and those who went to rescue her, Israel is opening an investigation?” Ms Hamada said.
“I want to say it clearly: opening an investigation is not justice,” she told The National.
Hind described her plight – trapped in the car with the bodies of her relatives and surrounded by Israeli troops and tanks – in an hours-long phone call to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society as she pleaded to be rescued.
“The evidence was overwhelming by independent organisations of those hours, from the moment she first called to the moment she was found. Why open an investigation now? Is it because the truth is too big to hide?” Ms Hamada asked.
“How could they not know that there were children in the car? Why didn't they start an investigation when my daughter was calling on the world to help her?”
Ms Hamada dismissed the announcement of an investigation as a farce and an attempt to improve Israel's image. She called for an independent, rather than a “closed, military” investigation, to hold those responsible accountable.
“I don't want this investigation. I want the truth,” she said. “I want to know who killed my daughter and the paramedics who went to rescue her, and who gave the order to kill and why she was left for those long hours.”
Not enough
Palestinian responder Rana Faqih, who spent hours on the phone with Hind before she was killed, agreed that Israel opening an investigation into her death was nowhere near enough.
“From the outset, the [Palestine Red Crescent] Society has demanded, and continues to demand, an independent investigation by a neutral and transparent committee,” Ms Faqih told The National.
Hind’s fate only became known when Israeli troops withdrew from the area and the car, containing the bodies of Hind, her aunt, uncle and four cousins, was found in the Tel Al Hawa district of Gaza city.
Hours after Hind's cousin Layan called the PRCS, Israel approved a rescue operation, which was carried out by Ahmad Al Madhoun and Youssef Al Zeino. The PRCS headquarters in Ramallah lost contact with their ambulance, which was found along with their bodies near Hind's relatives' car.
“Hind was a child crying for help, and the paramedics Ahmad and Youssef who responded to her had one humanitarian mission: to save a life,” Ms Faqih said. “It is deeply painful for a person to lose their life while waiting for someone to save them, and for a paramedic to lose their life while trying to reach them.”
Gaza this week was ranked the world's deadliest place for aid workers for a third consecutive year, with more than 1,700 humanitarian workers killed and at least 95 detained by Israel since October 2023.
“This investigation should not be limited to this single incident but should encompass all violations, targeting and arrests of the Society's staff and volunteers while they were performing their humanitarian duties,” Ms Faqih said.
Israel said Hind's killing was one of 150 such incidents during the Gaza war to have been reviewed by military prosecutors. The military denies wider allegations of genocide or war crimes in Gaza, where more than 73,400 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023.
Announcing decisions on five cases, Israeli prosecutors on Wednesday said Hind's killing and the deaths of 15 Palestinians in an ambush in March last year would be subject to further criminal investigations.
Three other cases have been closed: an Israeli strike that killed seven World Central Kitchen (WCK) charity workers in April 2024, and two incidents in which four Doctors Without Borders staff were killed.
WCK condemned the decision to close the case. “We fundamentally disagree with their decision about criminal investigations into the … air strikes that killed our team,” the charity said.
It added that Israel's account of the incident did not contain any justification or reason for the aid workers' deaths. “The decision is inconsistent with the full truth and deeply offensive.”
WCK maintained that the workers were unarmed and their whereabouts were known to the Israeli authorities, and that they were travelling in a clearly marked humanitarian vehicle at the time of the strike. “It knew our team’s movements, identities and activities in advance,” the charity added.
Australia summoned Israel's ambassador to express outrage at the decision not to pursue criminal proceedings over the strike, which killed one of its citizens, Zomi Frankcom.
“This decision falls far short of the accountability we expect,” Foreign Minister Penny Wong said. “Democracies seek and accept higher standards. The Australian government will not stop pressing Israel for justice for Zomi and her colleagues.”
International condemnation
Israel continues to carry out attacks in Gaza despite agreeing to a US-brokered ceasefire with Hamas in October last year. More than 1,200 people have been killed since then, including at least 16 in air strikes on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Egypt, Turkey and Qatar strongly condemned the recent attacks, saying the strikes had killed civilians, including women and children, and threatened efforts to implement a plan aimed at ending the Gaza conflict.
In a joint statement issued in their capacity as mediating countries on Thursday, the three states expressed deep concern over what they described as ongoing violations in Gaza.
They said the intensification of Israeli attacks was undermining regional and international efforts at a “critical juncture,” as intensive work was under way to implement the Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict.
The mediators pointed to Monday's meeting between the US-backed Board of Peace and Israeli officials, as well as what they described as constructive steps in the negotiation process.
They emphasised that Israel must fully comply with all its obligations under the ceasefire agreement and refrain from actions that could further undermine the truce or escalate tensions.
With reporting by Amr Mostafa.
