Israel investigates death of five-year-old girl in Gaza

**Will Chalk** (0:00)
This is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Will Chalk, and in the early hours of Thursday, the 20th of August, these are our main stories. Israel's military admits it was behind the shooting of a car in Gaza, in which a five-year-old girl was killed in 2024 After six years in the US, Britain's Prince Harry and his family are moving back to the UK.
Also in this podcast, there's good news for skin cancer patients, as a personalised vaccine shows early signs of promise. Think Gold Rush, and you might picture old western movies, but there's one going on in Kenya right now.

**Samuel Kiarie** (0:42)
We had approximately 10,000 people from all over the area, from neighbouring counties, and even from the neighbouring country of Uganda.

**Will Chalk** (0:51)
And why Greenland's waters are seeing a lot of whales.
But we're starting with a phone call that's been heard around the world.
Five-year-old Hind Rajab speaking to emergency workers from a car in Gaza in 2024, after six members of her family were shot dead around her. The call lasted hours. She was eventually cut off, and two weeks later she was found dead. Last year, as we've just heard a clip from there, the real call was made into an Oscar-nominated film, The Voice of Hind Rajab. But through all of this, the Israeli military has denied its troops were behind the shooting. That's now changed though. Our Middle East correspondent Lucy Williamson reports from Jerusalem.

**Lucy Williamson** (1:48)
For more than two years, Israel's military denied it had killed Hind Rajab. Her last conversation recorded by emergency workers, as the five-year-old cowered in a car surrounded by her dead relatives in an active combat zone.
The tank is next to me, Hind says. Is it very close? The operator asks. Very very, Hind replies. I'm scared. Can you come for me?
Six members of Hind's family were also killed that day, along with two ambulance workers sent to rescue her. Today, Israel's military said its troops had fired at the family car, which it said was traveling contrary to an approved evacuation route. It also said it had shelled the ambulance sent with prior coordination, killing the two paramedics inside. By the time emergency teams were allowed to the scene days later, all those inside both vehicles were dead. Hind's mother, Wissam, spoke to us that day.

**Wissam** (2:55)
For every person who heard my voice, my daughter's pleading voice yet did not rescue her. I will question them before God on the day of judgment.

**Lucy Williamson** (3:05)
Israel's military also said it was investigating the killing of 15 emergency workers by its forces in Gaza a year later. Their crushed rescue vehicles and bodies were found buried in the sand.
Today airstrikes in Gaza continued. Almost a year after a ceasefire there was signed. 17 people reported killed in strikes over the past two days. Israel said it had targeted Hamas commanders. Already disillusioned with ceasefire deals and promises of peace, many Gazans don't trust Israel's military to investigate itself.

**Will Chalk** (3:43)
That report was by Lucy Williamson. We should just add that in a statement, the Hind Rajab Foundation, which is based in Brussels, said these reported investigations, even if they do occur, should not be mistaken for a genuine step towards justice.
So what then are the prospects of a criminal investigation leading to criminal charges? Ziv Stahl is executive director of the Israeli human rights organisation Yesh Din. Sean Lay asked for her reaction to the IDF's announcement.

**Ziv Stahl** (4:12)
We are pleased by the decision. Of course, we are really regretting the fact that they decided also to close three other investigations. But since we are aware that this is so rare that they do open investigations, we feel that this is pleasing to us if you can use that terminology on something so tragic.

**Sean Lay** (4:32)
Is there anything about the way Israel conducts this that makes it different from that of other military?

**Ziv Stahl** (4:39)
First of all, it's not an investigation yet. In cases like the war in Gaza and other incidents in Gaza, they created this special mechanism. This is supposed to be a mechanism that conducts a quick assessment of whether or not there is suspicion of crime being committed, whether it's a war crime or criminal offence. Two points that you should know about this mechanism. One is that it's not quick at all. As you've seen those incidents that they have decided to open an investigation in, it took them years to decide that. Second is that the vast majority of the complaints and the reports about the incidents do not reach the point where they decide to open a criminal investigation. Maybe a third point is that the army and this mechanism do not investigate commanders almost ever and of course, not policymakers and political leaders.