Gaza: Palestinian Red Crescent lose contact with ambulance crew rescuing six-year-old girl

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) has lost contact with one of its ambulance crews as they attempted to rescue a six-year-old Palestinian girl trapped in a car, under fire by Israeli forces, in Gaza City late on Monday.

The PRCS received a call from 15-year-old Layan Hamadeh pleading for help after the vehicle she and her family were in, including her six-year-old sister Hind, was targeted by Israeli fire as they attempted to flee the besieged city.

In the call - heard by The New Arab - Layan told the Red Crescent that their car was surrounded by Israeli tanks and forces.

A few seconds later, intense gunfire can be heard, after which the girl stops responding.

The PRCS said Layan was shot while she was on the phone with their crew while Hind was trapped inside the vehicle.

An ambulance crew was sent to rescue her late on Monday but had not returned, the PRC said, with no contact with the medics for 18 hours.

"Information about them remains unknown, and we are extremely worried about their fate, unsure whether they succeeded in evacuating her or not," the PRC said.

The Gaza reporter for The New Arab's Arabic language service confirmed that the attack took place near the Islamic University of Gaza; an area which had come under relentless bombardment by Israel since the start of the war.

Rubble from buildings now blocks the route in and out of the area, making it difficult for ambulances to reach the injured.

Hind was with her uncle Bashar Hamadeh's family when the vehicle was fired on, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported, adding that all members of the family, including four children, were killed.

Hind was reportedly the only one to survive the attack and was waiting for the rescue team to evacuate her.

Since the start of its onslaught on Gaza on 7 October, Israel has attacked ambulances, their crews, medics and hospitals.

Most hospitals in Gaza have already ceased functioning due to bombardments and supply shortages after nearly four months of intense Israeli attacks.

More than 1,100 medical personnel in the Gaza Strip have been killed or wounded by Israeli attacks, which have also killed at least 26,700 Palestinians - mostly women and children.