Israel’s military announced on Wednesday that it would conduct internal investigations into the deaths of Palestinian girl 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, with decisions made on 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 no basis for initiating a criminal investigation in this case.
The Israeli military stated that due to the complex operational reality and various military missions undertaken over more than a thousand days, they are obligated under international and domestic law to investigate exceptional incidents occurring during combat.
The international community paid attention to both the killing of Hind Rajab in February 2024 and the tragic death of 15 Palestinian medics in May 2025. However, Israeli rights groups expressed skepticism toward the effectiveness of investigations into alleged misconduct by Israeli troops, citing a lack of convictions.
A spokesperson for the Israeli rights organization Yesh Din highlighted the rarity of indictments against soldiers and commanders despite numerous complaints of wrongdoing. The spokesperson criticized the leniency of sentences handed out in cases where convictions are secured.
Hind Rajab’s grandmother, also named Hind Rajab, expressed disbelief at the military’s announcement and called for independent investigations by other countries into her granddaughter’s death and the treatment of children in Gaza. She demanded accountability for the killing of Hind and stressed the rights of all Gaza children.
Recent reports from UNICEF indicated that since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023, over 64,000 Palestinian children have been injured or killed. Furthermore, a United Nations Human Rights Council report accused Israeli security forces of intentionally targeting and killing Palestinian children in Gaza, a claim that Israel vehemently rejected, labeling it as propaganda.
The tragic story of Hind Rajab, who pleaded for help while trapped in a car during an Israeli offensive, captured international attention. Despite her distress calls to Palestinian medics, contact was lost when an ambulance arrived, resulting in the subsequent discovery of her body and that of her family members and rescue workers. A film depicting her ordeal won accolades and nominations in various prestigious film festivals.
In a separate incident in March 2025, the bodies of 15 emergency and aid workers were found in a grave in the southern Gaza Strip. UN officials revealed that these workers, from organizations such as the Red Crescent and Palestinian Civil Defense, were killed by Israeli forces while engaged in life-saving efforts. Calls for justice and answers regarding their deaths were made by UN aid chief Tom Fletcher.
Israel maintained that it never intentionally targeted civilians in the Gaza conflict, attributing civilian casualties to Hamas using them as shields. Questions were raised about the circumstances of the recovery of the workers’ bodies and the crushed vehicles found at the site. The Red Crescent emphasized the protection of medical personnel under international law and the need to prevent such tragedies.
Ultimately, the focus shifted towards prevention rather than investigation, with the Red Crescent urging respect for humanitarian workers and their emblem as they carry out their vital duties.