Hind Rajab's mother rejects Israeli probe, demands independent inquiry

The mother of Hind Rajab, the five-year-old Palestinian girl whose death became a symbol of civilian suffering in Gaza, has rejected the Israeli military's decision to investigate its own troops, demanding an independent inquiry instead.

Wesam Hamada said the memory of her daughter's final moments remains unbearable. "All I remember is her voice pleading, 'Mama, I'm scared. Mama, I'm hungry. Mama, I'm hurt,'" she said. "Her voice keeps repeating in my ears."

Hind was killed in January 2024 along with six relatives and two paramedics who were dispatched to rescue them. The family's car had been fleeing an Israeli ground operation in Gaza City when it came under fire. Recordings of Hind's desperate phone calls to her mother and emergency dispatchers, in which gunfire can be heard, drew international attention and were featured in an Oscar-nominated documentary.

This week, the Israeli military acknowledged its forces fired at the car and at the ambulance that had been sent to help, and announced a criminal investigation into the incident. But Hamada questioned why the admission took so long. "Why did the investigation and the acknowledgment of the shooting at Hind's car and at the paramedics come only after more than two years?" she asked. "It's an attempt to distract from what's happening in Gaza and improve the army's image to the world."

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society, whose dispatchers stayed on the line with Hind for hours, also expressed doubt that the Israeli probe would yield accountability. Rana Al Faqih, the dispatcher who spoke with Hind, said an impartial investigation is the only way to deliver justice for the families of the victims.

The military's announcement is part of a broader review of roughly 150 incidents from the war. However, such investigations rarely result in prosecutions. An analysis by the Israeli rights group Yesh Din found that only 0.17% of incidents reviewed between 2014 and 2022 led to charges.

The Hind Rajab Foundation, a Belgium-based group that campaigns for the arrest of Israeli soldiers accused of war crimes, dismissed the military probe, saying it "should not be mistaken for a genuine step toward justice."

Hind's mother said her loss is shared by countless families across Gaza. "The pain is like the pain of every mother who has lost her child in Gaza," she said. "You wish she were in front of you, growing up and fulfilling your dreams and her dreams, and then you lose her in the most horrific circumstances."