GAZA: An apparent Israeli airstrike killed six international aid workers with the World Central Kitchen and their Palestinian driver, the charity said Tuesday, in a potentially major setback to efforts to deliver aid by sea to Gaza, where Israel’s offensive against Hamas has pushed hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to the brink of starvation.
The food charity, founded by celebrity chef José Andrés, said it was immediately suspending operations in the region.
The source of fire late Monday could not be independently confirmed. The Israeli military expressed “sincere sorrow” over the deaths while stopping short of accepting responsibility.
Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the top military spokesman, said that officials are reviewing the incident at the highest levels. He says an independent investigation will be launched that “will help us reduce the risk of such an event from occurring again.”
Footage showed the bodies, several wearing protective gear with the charity’s logo, at a hospital in the central Gaza town of Deir al-Balah. Those killed include three British nationals, an Australian, a Polish national and an American-Canadian dual citizen, according to hospital records.
Despite co-ordinating movements with the Israeli Defense Force, the convoy was hit as it was leaving its Deir Al-Balah warehouse, after unloading more than 100 tons of humanitarian food aid brought to Gaza by sea, WCK said.
“This is not only an attack against WCK, this is an attack on humanitarian organizations showing up in the most dire of situations where food is being used as a weapon of war,” said Erin Gore, chief executive of World Central Kitchen.
“This is unforgivable.”
We are aware of reports that members of the World Central Kitchen team have been killed in an IDF attack while working to support our humanitarian food delivery efforts in Gaza. This is a tragedy. Humanitarian aid workers and civilians should NEVER be a target. EVER.
— World Central Kitchen (@WCKitchen) April 1, 2024
The Israeli military said it was doing a thorough review at the highest levels to understand the circumstances of what it called a tragic incident.
“The IDF makes extensive efforts to enable the safe delivery of humanitarian aid, and has been working closely with WCK in their vital efforts to provide food and humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza,” the military said.
Andres, who started WCK in 2010 by sending cooks and food to Haiti after an earthquake, earlier said he was heartbroken and grieving for the families and friends of those who died.
“The Israeli government needs to stop this indiscriminate killing,” he said on social media.
“It needs to stop restricting humanitarian aid, stop killing civilians and aid workers, and stop using food as a weapon. No more innocent lives lost. Peace starts with our shared humanity. It needs to start now.”
In a statement, the Islamist group Hamas said the attack aimed to terrorize workers of international humanitarian agencies, deterring them from their missions.
Countries demand explanations from Israel
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed the death of 44-year-old aid worker Lalzawmi “Zomi” Frankcom and said his government had contacted Israel to demand those responsible be held accountable.
“This is a human tragedy that should never have occurred, that is completely unacceptable and Australia will seek full and proper accountability,” he told a press conference on Tuesday.
Albanese said innocent civilians and humanitarian workers needed to be protected and reiterated his call for a sustainable ceasefire in Gaza along with more aid to help those suffering from “tremendous deprivation.”
Poland's foreign minister asked the Israeli ambassador in Warsaw for “urgent explanations” after the killing of a Polish volunteer providing aid in Gaza.
“I personally asked the Israeli ambassador @YacovLivne for urgent explanations,” Radoslaw Sikorski wrote on social media platform X. “He assured me that Poland would soon receive the results of the investigation into this tragedy. I join in my condolences to the family of our brave volunteer and all civilian victims in the Gaza Strip.”
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Tuesday that Israel must clarify the circumstances surrounding the deaths of WCK aid workers as soon as possible.
“I hope and demand that the Israeli government clarifies as soon as possible the circumstances of this brutal attack that has taken the lives of seven aid workers who were doing nothing more than helping,” Sanchez said after visiting the Jabal el-Hussein camp for Palestinian refugees in Amman.
Video obtained by Reuters showed paramedics moving bodies into a hospital and displaying the passports of three of those killed.
“We are heartbroken and deeply troubled by the strike that killed @WCKitchen aid workers in Gaza,” US National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said on social media.
“Humanitarian aid workers must be protected as they deliver aid that is desperately needed, and we urge Israel to swiftly investigate what happened.”
WCK said it was pausing its operations in the region immediately and would make decisions soon about the future of its work.
WCK delivers food relief and prepares meals for people in need. It said last month it had served more than 42 million meals in Gaza over 175 days.
WCK was involved in the first shipment of aid to Gaza via a sea corridor from Cyprus in March. A second WCK maritime aid shipment of 332 tons arrived in Gaza early this week.
Since starting operations in 2010, the organization has delivered food for communities hit by natural disasters, refugees at the US border, health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic and people in conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.
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