Gaza girl trapped under Israeli fire found dead days after begging for help

The body of Hid Rajab, the six-year-old Palestinian girl who went missing when an Israeli tank hit their family vehicle in Gaza 12 days ago and pleaded for hours on the phone with a paramedic to save her, has finally been found.

The two doctors who were sent to look for her also died during their operation, according to Al Jazeera.

All seven passengers in the car Hind was in were confirmed dead on Saturday by the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) and the girl’s family.

The Palestinian aid group also said they lost crew members Yusuf Zeino and Ahmed al-Madhoun in the Israeli attack on Gaza City civilians.

In the city’s Tal al-Hawa district, family members discovered Hind’s body next to those of her uncle, aunt and their three children, according to a Palestinian News Agency report. Waffle.

Sameeh Hamadeh, one of Hind’s other uncles, claimed the car was riddled with bullets.

“Occupation deliberately targeted the ambulance upon its arrival at the scene, where it was a few meters away from the vehicle containing the trapped Hind child,” the PRCS statement said.

“Despite prior coordination to allow the ambulance to reach the location to rescue the child, Hid, the occupation deliberately targeted the Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance crew,” he added.

In an audio tape released by PRCS earlier this month, Hind was heard pleading with a rescue team member over the phone. It is believed that she was the only survivor and she was scared as all her loved ones were dead.

“I’m so scared, come on. Get someone to come get me,” she was heard crying desperately in the phone call that PRCS said took three hours to calm the frightened child.

Before that, the Israeli military had said it was unaware of the incident.

To draw attention to the plight of Palestinian health workers, who continue to face attacks by the Israeli military, the PRC began counting the hours since it lost contact with Hid and the crew.

Shortly after the family came forward, Hind’s mother said Al Jazeera Arabic that he had managed to reach both her and her older cousin, 15-year-old Layan Hamadeh, who was riding in the car with Hind.

“They are shooting at us. The tank is next to us,” Layan said in a recording released at the time.

The harrowing audio clips revealed Hid’s plight and highlighted how impossible it is for civilians to survive Israel’s four-month assault on Gaza, which many governments have referred to as “genocide”.

Motaz Azaiza, the Palestinian journalist who survived Israel’s deadly violence against the people of Gaza, took to X (formerly Twitter) to express his immense sadness and despair over the death of the six-year-old girl.

Additionally, many pro-Palestine activists condemned Israeli atrocities targeting Palestinian children like Hind.

As of now, the Israeli military is targeting Rafah amid ongoing hunger, displacement and fear for Palestinians.