“The Voice of Hind Rajab”: What do we know about the tragedy that inspired the shocking film?

She is the face of the Palestinian children killed in Gaza. In photos circulating online, little Hind Rajab sometimes wears a crown of pink flowers on her wavy brown hair, sometimes a princess tiara on a tight bun. She has chubby cheeks and childish dimples. She was five years old when she was killed in January 2024 along with members of her family in Gaza City, trapped in a bullet-riddled car.

The drama that inspired the film that bears her name, "The Voice of Hind Rajab," premieres this Wednesday, September 3, at the Venice Film Festival . This highly anticipated feature film by French-Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania is in the running for the Golden Lion.

To write this story, the filmmaker drew inspiration from audio recordings of calls made by Hind Rajab's family to the Palestinian Red Crescent relief center while they were trapped in their car facing an Israeli tank. Excerpts from these audio archives, in which the voice of the girl in distress can be heard, were shared a few months ago on social media and shocked the entire world. What do we really know about this tragedy?

On March 19, 2024, a month and a half after the tragedy, six UN special rapporteurs (experts mandated by the United Nations Human Rights Council) wrote a report on the events to express their deep concern and denounce "a war crime." They then summarized the information in their possession.

According to the latter, on January 29, 2024, young Hind Rajab was in a black Kia vehicle with her uncle Bashar, her aunt Inaam and four of her cousins ​​aged between 16 and 7. They were fleeing the fighting in northern Gaza when they found themselves "trapped under heavy Israeli tank fire." The first salvo killed the uncle, the aunt and two children. One of Hind Rahab's cousins, the only survivor in the vehicle with the five-year-old girl, then called one of her uncles by phone. The latter alerted the Palestinian Red Crescent and a rescue operation was launched.

The Palestinian Red Crescent managed to reach the teenage cousin, who, distraught, explained that an Israeli tank was firing at the car. "The car was near the Fares gas station, in the Tal Al-Hawa neighborhood, southwest of Gaza City. During the call, we heard intense gunfire and continuous screams before suddenly falling silent," reads the UN experts' account of the events. Thanks to the phone still on, the Red Crescent members confirmed that the 5-year-old girl was still alive and remained on the line with her for nearly three hours before the call was cut off.

According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, an ambulance was about to arrive near the gas station. It had obtained permission from the Israeli authorities to approach. However, the two paramedics were also killed and their vehicle destroyed. On February 10, 2023, twelve days after the incident, the bodies of Hind Rahab, six members of her family, and the two paramedics were found.

“ Without prejudging the accuracy of the above allegations, we are deeply alarmed by the unlawful, apparently targeted killing of an entire displaced family of two adults and five children, while they were traveling by car in Gaza City seeking safety and posing no threat. As well as by the subsequent killing of two Palestinian Red Crescent paramedics whose ambulance was also targeted while they were attempting to provide assistance to the victims,” the UN Special Rapporteurs concluded.

On July 19, 2024, another statement from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) denounced "the lack of investigation and accountability, more than five months after the tragic murder of Hind and six other members of her family trapped in a car that came under Israeli fire in Gaza ." UNHCR experts also described as "unacceptable" Israel's claims that its troops were not in the area at the time.

On the eve of the release of the film "The Voice of Hind Rajab," the Israeli army has still not announced a formal investigation into the tragedy and has announced, without giving details, that the circumstances of the girl's death are still "being examined."

Director Kaouther Ben Hania, who won the César Award for Best Documentary Film in 2024 for Olfa's Daughters , drew on long conversations with Hind's mother and all the people who spoke to her during her final moments. "I listened, I cried, I wrote," explains the filmmaker, who wants to " give a voice and a face" to the Palestinian victims.

"I hope this film will help stop this destructive war and save other children in Gaza," said Hind's 29-year-old mother, who still lives in Gaza City. A Brussels-based foundation named after her daughter aims to fight impunity by regularly filing complaints against Israeli soldiers accused of war crimes.