Pro-Palestinian activists on Wednesday marked one year since the murder of five-year-old Palestinian Girl Hind Rajab by Israeli forces in Gaza during the genocide. On January 29, 2024, five-year-old Hind Rajab was murdered, alongside her family, in a brutal act of genocidal violence by the Israeli forces.
The case of Hind Rajab and her family also became the namesake of several renamed university campuses during solidarity actions across the world in 2024. Most famously at Columbia University, where “Hamilton Hall” was given the name “Hind’s Hall” in honour of Hind Rajab. “Hind’s Hall” is also the title of a single by Macklemore, which gained attention all over the globe, climbing the streaming charts. Macklemore pledged to donate all proceeds of the song to UNRWA
Hind survived the initial attack but was left trapped in the wreckage, surrounded by the dead bodies of her family members. Her cries for help, captured during a live call to emergency services, were broadcast worldwide.
The incident happened when Hind, alongside her four cousins, aunt, and uncle, attempted to evacuate from the Tel al-Hawa neighbourhood in Gaza City as Israeli forces invaded. As they were trying to escape in their car, an IOF unit began shooting at their vehicle. Hind’s cousin, 15-year-old Layan Hamada, made an urgent call to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS), stating that they were being targeted, a tank was getting closer, and that everyone in the car besides Hind and her were killed.
Seconds after, gunshots were heard once again, and Layan’s screaming abruptly stopped. Hind was now the only one left alive, gravely injured and alone, trapped in the car. The PRCS stayed in contact with Hind, as they attempted to gain permission from the Israeli forces to send paramedics to the location to save her.
Around 6 PM, PRCS paramedics Yusuf al-Zeino and Ahmed al-Madhoun left Al-Ahli Hospital in an ambulance to rescue Hind. After arriving at the car’s location, they were never heard from again. The last thing captured on a call between the two paramedics and the PRCS communication team was an explosion.
Two weeks after the attack, when the IDF finally evacuated the area, the decomposing bodies of Hind, Layan and their family members were discovered. A few meters away, the burnt-out ambulance was found together with the remains of paramedics Yusuf and Ahmed.
An investigation by Forensic Architecture later found that a total of 335 bullets were fired at the car and that the tank operators had a clear view of the two children inside the vehicle. This investigation also found that the IDF tank was placed only 13 to 23 meters away from the car of Hind’s family. In just 6 seconds, 64 gunshots were fired on Hind’s cousin, 15-year-old Layan, while she was already on the call with the PRCS.
Honouring the Palestinian child, The Hind Rajab Foundation was established during the Gaza genocide to actively pursue legal action against those responsible for these atrocities, including perpetrators, accomplices, and inciters of violence against Palestinians.
In a statement, the Hind Rajab Foundation said, “We are committed to ending Israeli impunity, achieving justice, and ensuring that the legacy of those lost is honoured and no life is forgotten.”
The group has filed a thousand cases at the ICC, and tens of cases all across the world in various jurisdictions against Israeli army personnel. Among recent cases, a criminal complaint filed in Brazil against Yuval Vagdani led to the Brazilian federal court ordering the federal police to conduct investigative measures against the soldier. This case represents a historic legal development in international law; IDF soldiers who acted with impunity in Gaza, will not be able to travel without facing the risk of accountability for their actions. Some of the most recent complaints were filed in Spain, Austria, Germany and Thailand.
