There was quick international anger after a Israeli attack resulted in the death of six foreign aid workers from U.S.-based aid group World Central Kitchen and their Palestinian driver in Gaza on Monday.
The aid group stated that employees from Australia, the United Kingdom, Poland, and a U.S.-Canada citizen were killed in the attack, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later admitted was caused by the Israeli army but claimed it was accidental.
Established in 2010 by Spanish-American Michelin-starred chef Jose Andres, World Central Kitchen (WCK) has been one of the few aid organizations able to bring food to Gaza, where a humanitarian crisis is growing due to an intense Israeli military campaign against Hamas in the area.
Here's the current information about the attack and the reaction from the Western world so far.
The fundamental details
The non-profit mentioned that its team was leaving a storage location and driving through a "deconflicted" area in Deir el-Balah when their convoy of "two armored cars with the WCK logo and a non-armored vehicle" were hit.
The three vehicles were targeted in three different attacks, with the first and last occurring about 1.5 miles apart, based on aerial views of the damage shared on social media.
The attacks happened even after the group stated it had coordinated its movements with the Israeli military, as per a WCK press release.
WCK, which focuses on providing food during major conflicts and disasters around the world, has halted its operations in Gaza following the tragedy.
“The Israeli government needs to stop this indiscriminate killing. It needs to stop limiting humanitarian aid, stop killing civilians and aid workers, and stop using food as a weapon,” the chef wrote on X after the attack. “No more innocent lives lost. Peace begins with our shared humanity. It needs to start now.”
Additionally, WCK CEO Erin Gore stated the attack was “not only an assault against WCK, this is an attack on humanitarian organizations arriving in the most desperate situations where food is being used as a weapon of war. This is unforgivable.”
Israel's reaction
Netanyahu, who had recently been released from the hospital after a hernia surgery, acknowledged a “tragic event in which our forces unintentionally harmed non-combatants in the Gaza Strip.”
“This happens in war,” he stated in an announcement. “We are conducting a thorough inquiry and are in contact with the governments. We will do everything to prevent a recurrence.”
Israeli military spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari later stated its officials are initiating an investigation to examine the incident.
“We have been reviewing the incident at the highest levels to understand the circumstances of what happened and how it happened,” Hagari mentioned in a video message Tuesday.
More about World Central Kitchen
WCK works to deliver hot meals to people trapped in the midst of conflicts, natural disasters, and other crises, including war, civil unrest, earthquakes, hurricanes, flooding, and other climate change-related events. The group partners with local chefs, trains cooks, and supports farmers to provide food.
WCK has been in Gaza since shortly after the war began in October and has used various methods to deliver food to the area, such as land convoys and airdrops from Jordan. They also have a team in Cairo, Egypt, which has sent over 1,700 trucks through Rafah Crossing.
WCK has been leading efforts to bring food into Gaza, where Palestinians are facing famine due to the very slow pace at which Israel has allowed aid trucks into the area.
The organization claims it has provided 42 million meals in Gaza as of March, but aid agencies still warn that half of the population there is on the verge of famine.
To bypass the checkpoints into Gaza, WCK has collaborated with the United Arab Emirates to transport food via sea, using ships from Cyprus. The first maritime food shipment arrived in Gaza on March 20.
A second shipment of food arrived in Gaza on Monday, carried by three ships, but most of it was sent back after WCK halted operations. NBC News reported..
The group is also providing assistance on the Israel-Lebanon border and in Israel.
Context
The deaths of the foreign aid workers have caused international frustrations and anger to rise over Israel’s conflict with Hamas in Gaza, where more than 32,000 Palestinians have been killed and hundreds of thousands are facing starvation.
Israel’s military campaign has already sparked widespread condemnation and calls for a ceasefire in Gaza, but these recent aid worker deaths further damage its global image.
The attacks are also likely to hinder aid into the enclave, as humanitarian groups have received little protection from Israel in the ongoing conflict.
Israeli forces have consistently restricted aid from entering the Gaza Strip, and have even fired at Palestinians waiting in line for food and essential supplies.
Gaza is now “one of the world’s most dangerous and challenging places to work,” with at least 196 aid workers killed there from October to March 20, according to Jamie McGoldrick, interim U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, in a statement. “There is no safe place left in Gaza,” he added..
The reaction from Western leaders
World leaders were quick to denounce Israel for the attacks, echoing WCK’s anger, calling for an investigation and demanding an explanation from Israel.
United Nations Secretary General António Guterres also
reprimanded Israel for the bombings that killed WCK staff, bringing the number of aid workers killed in the Israel-Hamas war to 196, including over 175 U.N. staff, which he called “unconscionable.” UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak
stated on Twitter that Israel “must explain how this tragic incident occurred and take immediate steps to protect aid workers and facilitate vital humanitarian operations in Gaza.” The country’s foreign minister David Cameron also called for an investigation into the attack.
In Poland, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its objection to the disregard for international humanitarian law and the protection of civilians, including humanitarian workers, and has requested an explanation from the Israeli embassy, security forces, and military.
The Foreign Minister of Spain, Jose Manuel Albares, expressed horror at the deaths of the aid workers and called for a ceasefire and the entry of humanitarian aid.
The European Union’s humanitarian affairs commissioner Janez Lenarcic also demanded a ceasefire, stating, “This must stop. Now.”
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed the death of Australian national Zomi Frankcom, calling it completely unacceptable and beyond any reasonable circumstances.
Australian Prime Minister Albanese expressed his sorrow and demanded accountability for the tragic event, also requesting a call-in from the Israeli ambassador.
Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly condemned the strikes and called for a full investigation.
Canadian Foreign Minister Joly demanded full accountability for the killings, stating that strikes on humanitarian personnel are absolutely unacceptable.
U.S. response
Tensions between the U.S. and Israel, strained due to the Biden administration's calls for minimizing civilian deaths and allowing more aid into the strip, are likely to be further damaged by the WCK staff deaths.
Despite the strained relations, Biden administration officials indicated there would be no change in U.S. support for Israel's war against Hamas.
Top national security spokesperson John Kirby called an Israeli strike “emblematic of a larger problem” and expressed the administration's outrage at the incident.
Kirby expected a broader and swift investigation that would be made public with appropriate accountability.
Kirby said at a press conference While stating that the U.S. would press Israel to ensure the safety of humanitarian workers in Gaza, no caveats would be given, and it would continue to support the Israel military..
Kirby stressed the ongoing threat of Hamas and the need to ensure precision in Israel’s actions, along with the continued delivery of aid, while emphasizing that incidents like the 7th of October should not happen again.
Kirby added, “You want us to hang some sort of condition over their neck. And what I’m telling you is that we continue to work with the Israelis to make sure that they are precise as they can be, and that more aid is getting in, and we’re going to continue to take that approach.”
In a separate press conference, Secretary of State Antony Blinken offered condolences to those affected and emphasized the need to protect aid workers like the group’s staff.
Blinken stated, “We shouldn’t have a situation where people who are simply trying to help their fellow human beings are themselves at grave risk,” and added that the U.S. has spoken to Israel about the incident and arranged for an impartial investigation into what happened.
But some U.S. lawmakers wanted the Biden administration to take more action, including Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), who urged Washington to stop providing military assistance to Israel because it's being used for indiscriminate killings.
“The recent tragedy caused by Netanyahu’s air strikes on Gaza – resulting in the deaths of courageous individuals at WCKitchen, providing food to starving Palestinians,” she said in
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) a post on X.
tweeted that the aid workers “were trying to feed starving people. The challenge of getting assistance into Gaza is already overwhelming — aid workers from [WCK, the U.N.] and others shouldn’t face death when delivering [aid]. ENOUGH!” And Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y), who has frequently called for a ceasefire, said “Humanitarian aid workers and civilians should
never be the target of military attacks There was immediate international outrage after an Israeli attack killed six foreign aid workers of U.S.-based aid group World Central Kitchen and their Palestinian driver in Gaza on Monday. The group said staff from Australia, the United Kingdom, Poland and a U.S.-Canada citizen were killed in the strike, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later acknowledged occurred….”
