• Introduce Justice for Hind Rajab Act; seek to hold individuals accountable under US war crimes statutes
• Move comes after analysis suggested an Israeli tank fired over 300 rounds at the family’s car

ISLAMABAD: Lawmakers in the United States introduced legislation on Thursday demanding a US investigation into the killing of Hind Rajab, a 5-year-old Palestinian girl who was shot dead by Israeli forces in Gaza after being trapped for hours in a car with her family members.

The Justice for Hind Rajab Act, introduced by Senators Peter Welch and Chris Van Hollen and Representatives Sara Jacobs, Pramila Jayapal and Joaquin Castro, would require the US government to investigate the circumstances surrounding the Jan 29 killing.

The bill also seeks answers from the administration about what lawmakers describe as broader patterns of civilian harm in Gaza.

“I was horrified by reports of the Israeli Defence Forces firing over 300 bullets at her and her family while they were simply trying to escape Gaza,” Jacobs said in a statement. “No child should have to face that kind of terror, and no family should have to carry that kind of loss.”

Hind was killed after being on the phone for more than an hour with the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, pleading for help. The society reported that she was under fire from a tank in Gaza’s Tel al-Hawa neighbourhood.

An ambulance dispatched to rescue her along a route approved by the Israel Defence Forces was later destroyed, killing the two paramedics inside.

An independent investigation by the London-based research group Forensic Architecture analysed satellite imagery and visual evidence, concluding that several Israeli tanks were near the vehicle and that one fired 335 rounds at the car carrying Hind and her family. The group also suggested that a tank likely attacked the ambulance.

“This was not a ‘fog of war’ situation,” Welch said. “There wasn’t any reason for the IDF to believe Hind and her family — who were trying to escape the fighting in Gaza — posed a threat.”

Hind’s story and the recording of her emergency call later became the basis for the docudrama “The Voice of Hind Rajab” by Tunisian filmmaker Kaouther Ben Hania.

The proposed legislation calls for a US State Department report detailing American and Israeli efforts to investigate the attack and hold individuals accountable.

It would also require the government to certify compliance with American laws that prohibit assistance to foreign security units implicated in serious human rights violations.

Additionally, the bill mandates a certification from the secretary of state and the attorney general that the government is complying with US war-crime laws and is prepared to investigate and, where appropriate, prosecute those responsible.

“Today we honour the life of Hind Rajab,” Jayapal said in a statement. “This legislation demands an investigation into her killing so we can finally begin to bring about accountability for the countless war crimes the US has been complicit in inside Gaza.”

Published in Dawn, March 14th, 2026