A
UK-based research group published the findings of a forensic investigation on Friday, revealing that Hind Rajab, the six-year-old
Palestinian girl found dead along with members of her family in northern Gaza earlier this year, was most likely killed by
Israeli tank fire.
The
investigation found that the car in which Rajab was killed had been hit with 355 bullets, with most of the entries coming from the right side of the vehicle. The investigation was conducted by Forensic Architecture, Al Jazeera's Fault Lines and the NGO Earshot.
Forensic Architecture said that the gun used for this attack was "firing at a range of 750–900 rounds per minute", and that this range exceeds that of the AK-type assault rifle that is commonly attributed to Palestinian fighters operating in Gaza.
"This range of rounds per minute is consistent with Israeli army-issued weaponry such as the M4 assault rifle or the FN MAG machine gun on a Merkava tank," the investigation said.
The probe - using a mix of kinetic analysis, satellite imagery and footage sourced from the site of the incident - also found that the Israeli tank that fired upon the vehicle Rajab was sitting inside must have been positioned within 13 to 23 metres when it killed Layan, Rajab's 15-year-old cousin.
