TEL AVIV — The search for Hind Rajab, a six-year-old girl who was missing in Gaza City for 12 days after she made a desperate plea for first responders to rescue her, has reached a tragic end.
Both Hind and the two first responders dispatched in a bid to save her have been found dead in Gaza City, the Palestine Red Crescent Society told NBC News today.
The little girl’s body was found “trapped” in the vehicle where she had spoken with an emergency dispatcher for more than three hours as gunfire rang out around her, the PRCS said. First responders Yusuf Zeino and Ahmed Al-Madhoun were also killed, it added.
Hind was traveling with her aunt, uncle and four cousins when their car came under bombardment.
Her 15-year-old cousin Layan called first responders for help, telling the operator that an Israeli tank appeared to be closing in before a burst of gun fire rang out.
After she screamed the line fell dead.
When the dispatchers called back, Hind had answered, saying Layan had been killed.
“Come take me. Please, will you come?” she begged the dispatcher in the call that was released by the medical service.
PRCS spokesperson Nebal Farsakh confirmed today that Hind was “found dead,” along with the ambulance crew.
The PRCS accused Israeli forces of targeting the ambulance after it arrived at the scene despite prior coordination to allow the crew to reach the area.
NBC News has approached the Israel Defense Forces for comment.
Before her daughter’s body was found, Hind’s mother, Wissam Hamadah, told NBC News of her desperation to be reunited with her daughter. “We want our daughter, she is innocent. It’s a sin what is happening to her,” she said.
Hamadah said the family had fled fighting in the Tel Al-Hawa neighborhood in Gaza City. As the family fled, she said she placed Hind in the vehicle with her relatives, hoping she would be safer there.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
