Israeli military launches criminal probes into killings of Hind Rajab and Palestinian paramedics

Israeli military launches criminal probes into killings of Hind Rajab and Palestinian paramedics Both the killing of Rajab in February 2024 and the killing of 15 Palestinian medics in May 2025 gained international attention.

Key points

• Both the killing of Rajab in February 2024 and the killing of 15 Palestinian medics in May 2025 gained international attention.
• Hind's cousin, 15-year-old Layan Hamada, called the Palestinian Red Crescent paramedic centre, telling them that a tank was approaching and that her family had been killed.
• The military remarked it would not launch criminal investigations into three other attacks that killed aid workers from World Central Kitchen and Doctors Without Borders.
• Hind Rajab was killed alongside her relatives while trying to flee Gaza City against the backdrop of an Israeli offensive.
• The 15 paramedics were killed when Israeli troops opened fire on their vehicles in the southern city of Rafah, then buried them in a mass grave.

Hind Rajab was killed alongside her relatives while trying to flee Gaza City against the backdrop of an Israeli offensive. Israeli troops opened fire on a vehicle carrying Hind and four of her cousins, and her aunt and uncle. File Photo Credit: Reuters.

Israel's military remarked Wednesday (August 19, 2026) it would launch criminal investigations into two high-profile attacks on Palestinians during the war in Gaza, including the killings of 5-year-old Hind Rajab and her family and of 15 Palestinian paramedics.

For context, the military remarked it would not launch criminal investigations into three other attacks that killed aid workers from World Central Kitchen and Doctors Without Borders.

It published a statement announcing that it had completed reviews of 150 incidents of troop conduct in Gaza and had produced decisions on five cases.

For context, the statement did not mention other high-profile killings that the military 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 Associated Press and other news organisations.

Hind's cousin, 15-year-old Layan Hamada, called the Palestinian Red Crescent paramedic centre, telling them that a tank was approaching and that her family had been killed. Seconds afterwards, more gunshots were heard, and Layan's screaming ceased, according to the Red Crescent recording of the call.

Hind was the sole survivor in the car. The Red Crescent stayed in contact with her as they tried to obtain permission from the military to rescue her. Contact was lost. Hind, her five relatives and two medics were discovered dead 12 days afterwards.

Notably, the 15 paramedics were killed when Israeli troops opened fire on their vehicles in the southern city of Rafah, then buried them in a mass grave. Troops shot at the first ambulance that was driving to retrieve casualties from an Israeli offensive, then fired on a number of other emergency vehicles that went out to look for the first one, according to phone footage and the sole survivor of the shootings.

Troops then bulldozed over the bodies along with their mangled vehicles, burying them in a mass grave. UN and rescue workers were only able to reach the site a week afterwards to dig out the bodies.

Notably, the Israeli military initially remarked it opened fire as the vehicles were "advancing suspiciously" on nearby troops without headlights or emergency signals. But it backtracked from that account after the footage emerged, showing the Red Crescent and Civil Defence teams driving gradually with their emergency vehicle lights flashing and logos visible.

"We are not obligated to prove the truth because it is already proven to the whole world, " Eid Azizi, a Palestinian Red Crescent spokesperson, informed the Associated Press in a phone call. "We shouldn't have reached this point if they respected and followed the international humanitarian law."

Taken together, the developments around israeli military launches criminal probes into killings of Hind Rajab and Palestinian point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.