When we finally got into Gaza, we tried to investigate further.
There are no houses left - no mosques, no factories, and no orchards
Finding a house, even with an address, in a neighbourhood that has been bombed into oblivion, where all landmarks have been obliterated and even the locals cannot find their bearings, is not easy.
But we eventually met a man who knew Samar's family and took us to the family house, or what was left of it.
The four-storey building has been concertinaed to the ground.
Father's agony
Khalid Abed Rabbu wears on his face all the pain of Israel's bloody three-week campaign in Gaza. In his hand he carried the teddy bear that had belonged to his daughter, Samar's six-year-old sister.
Its head had been blown off, apparently in the same burst of gunfire that had cut his daughter in half.
He described the events of that night almost identically to his brother. There were minor discrepancies, but he too believes his daughters were shot in cold blood.
Khaled Abedrabou stands amid the rubble of his neighbourhood
Khaled Abedrabou found toys in the wreckage of his house
"There were soldiers leaning against the tank eating crisps," he said. "But then one of them jumped down and walked towards the house with an M16 automatic rifle."
He showed me a photo of his eldest daughter under shrouds in the mortuary.
"What has my family done to Israel," he cried. "What has Samar done to deserve all this pain?"
We have put the family's allegations to the Israelis. So far they have told us that they can not comment on specific cases.
Their spokesman said they had made every effort to limit civilian casualties but were fighting a terrorist organisation that often uses the civilian population as cover.
Troubled neighbourhood
The Israelis say is evidence that on many occasions when civilians were killed their troops had been responding to incoming fire.
There are reports of the neighbourhood where the family lived, known as Ezbat Abed Rabbu, had been used by militant fighters in the past. During an incursion in the spring of 2008 the Israelis took over Khalid's house for two days.
But Khalid insists he is not Hamas, he is not a fighter. He said he worked for the Palestinian Authority and is a member of Fatah, Hamas's political rivals.
"There were no fighters here," he added, picking up crisp bags printed with Hebrew lettering that the soldiers seemed to have left behind. "Do you think soldiers eat crisps sitting on their tanks when there is incoming fire?"
Samar's father and her uncle have not spoken to each other since she left Gaza for treatment in Egypt, yet in separate interviews they told us the three girls were outside the house, in plain view, when they were shot.
We toured the part of Jabaliya where the Abed Rabbus lived. In an area that must cover at least a square mile, there are no houses left - no mosques, no factories and no orchards. The entire neighbourhood has been devastated.
It may be true that fighters were hiding in the alleys of Jabaliya. It is possible that rockets were being fired from here towards Israel.
But for the people who lived here, this is a story of wanton destruction. The world must now decide whether the Israeli action here was justified under the rules of war.
From Our Own Correspondent was broadcast on Thursday, 22 January, 2009 at 1100 GMT on BBC Radio 4. Please check the programme schedules for World Service transmission times.