Israel’s military has announced that it will conduct internal investigations into the deaths of a Palestinian girl named Hind Rajab in January 2024 and 15 emergency and aid workers in March 2025 in Gaza. This decision came after probes by the Fact-Finding and Assessment Mechanism of the military, which looked into five incidents involving Palestinian fatalities.
Among the incidents reviewed was the killing of seven aid workers affiliated with the World Central Kitchen charity in April 2024. The military determined that there was insufficient evidence to warrant a criminal investigation in this particular case.
The Israeli military emphasized the challenging operational environment it faces, engaging in various military missions across multiple fronts for over a thousand days. It stated that it evaluates exceptional incidents during combat, in compliance with international and domestic laws.
The deaths of Hind Rajab and the 15 Palestinian medics garnered significant international attention. Despite the investigations, Israeli rights groups have noted that criminal probes involving Israeli soldiers rarely result in convictions. Yesh Din, an Israeli rights organization, highlighted the low rate of indictments and lenient sentences in such cases.
Hind Rajab’s grandmother expressed skepticism about Israel’s ability to conduct a fair investigation and called for other countries to look into the deaths of her granddaughter and other children in Gaza. She demanded accountability for the killing of Hind and stressed the rights of all Gaza children.
Recent reports have highlighted the toll on Palestinian children in Gaza, with UNICEF reporting that around 64,000 Palestinian children have been killed or injured since the start of the Gaza conflict in October 2023. A United Nations Human Rights Council report accused Israeli security forces of deliberately targeting and killing Palestinian children, a claim that Israel rejected as propaganda.
The tragic circumstances surrounding Hind Rajab’s death, where she pleaded for help while trapped in a car during an Israeli offensive in 2023, received global attention. The bodies of Hind, her family members, and ambulance workers were recovered days after the incident. A film documenting her story won awards and nominations for its portrayal of the events.
In March 2025, the bodies of 15 emergency and aid workers were found in a grave in the south of Gaza, prompting calls for justice from UN officials. The Red Crescent workers were allegedly killed by Israeli forces while carrying out their humanitarian duties. The Red Crescent emphasized the protection of its staff under international law and condemned the targeting of medical personnel in conflict zones.