Israel has killed seven people in an airstrike on a convoy distributing food in the Gaza Strip. The aid organization is not the only one to sharply criticize the attack. What is known about the fatal incident and what still needs to be clarified.
The death of foreign aid workers in the Gaza Strip in an Israeli airstrike threatens to further isolate the country and cause additional tensions with its most important ally, the United States. US President Joe Biden made serious accusations against Israel on Tuesday evening (local time): “Israel has not done enough to protect the aid workers who are trying to provide the civilian population with urgently needed help.” This is one of the main reasons why distributing humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip is so difficult, Biden complained in a written statement.
What happened?
On the night of Easter Monday to Tuesday, Israel attacked a convoy from the aid organization World Central Kitchen (WCK) from the air. Seven employees of the organization died.
“The WCK team was traveling in a conflict-free zone in two armored vehicles with the WCK logo and one unprotected vehicle”, . The convoy was hit, even though the trip had been coordinated with the Israeli army. The aid workers had just left a warehouse in the town of Deir al Balah in the central part of the Gaza Strip when they were fired upon. There they unloaded more than 100 tons of humanitarian food aid that was brought to the Gaza Strip by sea.
What kind of organization is World Central Kitchen?
World Central Kitchen is a relief foundation that the Spanish-born star chef José Andrés founded in 2010 in response to the devastating earthquake in Haiti. Since then, WCK has been providing meals to people in disaster areas around the world.
Region in turmoil
Who is on whose side in the Middle East?
WCK delivers groceries and prepares meals for those in need. According to its own information, the organization has served more than 42 million meals in the Gaza Strip. On “Our more than 60 kitchens in southern and central Gaza cook hundreds of thousands of meals every day (…),” said WCK.
Who died?
According to World Central Kitchen, the seven victims came from Australia, Poland, Great Britain and the Palestinian territories – and one of the victims also had US and Canadian citizenship. The news agency:
Saifeddin Issam Ayad Abutaha, 25, Palestinian. “He was happy to work with an organization that provides humanitarian aid to the displaced. Your death breaks our hearts, Saif,” his close friend Hassan said, according to the BBC. Abutaha, an employee in the food team, was buried on Tuesday in his hometown of Rafah.
John Chapman, 57, British, was part of the security team. He used to be with a British special forces and had only been in the Gaza Strip for a few weeks when he was killed. According to the newspaper, he leaves behind his wife and three children. He and the other two Britons killed are said to have.
Jacob Flickinger33, American and Canadian, was part of the food distribution team.
Lalzawmi “Zomi” Frankcom, 43, Australian, led the food distribution team. According to Reuters, she joined the aid organization after a career at Commonwealth Bank. Writes a former colleague about her: “I still remember her big smile, her loud laugh and her bubbly personality. Zomi had a light that filled the room whenever she came in.” A friend told Reuters: “It was the perfect job for her, she could serve hot meals to people who were perhaps at the lowest point in their lives.”
James “Jim” Henderson, 33, British, was part of the security team. He, too, had only been in the Gaza Strip for a few weeks, said a friend of Henderson’s. He previously served in the Royal Marines, an elite British Navy force, for six years, according to his LinkedIn page, Reuters reports
James Kirby, 47, British, was part of the security team. from a statement from his family: “We as a family are heartbroken at the loss of our beloved James Kirby. Along with the other six people who tragically lost their lives, he will be remembered as a hero. […] James was aware of the dangers involved in operating in Gaza, drawing on his experience in the British Armed Forces, where he served bravely in Bosnia and Afghanistan. Despite the risks, his compassionate nature drove him to help those in need.”
Damian Sobol, 35, Polish, worked in the food team. “There are no words to describe the feelings of the people who knew this amazing young man,” the mayor of Soból’s hometown of Przemysl wrote on Facebook, according to Reuters.
What does Israel’s prime minister say about the incident?
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has acknowledged that World Central Kitchen aid workers were killed “unintentionally.” “This happens in times of war,” Netanyahu said in a video message. The incident will be thoroughly investigated. Israel is also in contact with the governments of the countries where some of the dead came from. “We… will do everything we can to make sure something like this doesn’t happen again.”
What does Israel’s army say about the attack?
Israel’s chief of staff Herzi Halevi described the airstrike that killed several employees of the aid organization World Central Kitchen as a “serious mistake.”
“The attack was not carried out with the intention of harming the WCK volunteers. It was a mistake that followed a misidentification – at night during a war under very complex conditions. This should not have happened,” Halevi said in Wednesday night in a video statement. This was revealed by a preliminary investigation. An independent committee will thoroughly investigate the incident and conclude it “in the next few days”. The army will learn from the conclusions “and implement them immediately,” said the Israeli chief of staff, expressing his regret.
What don’t we know yet?
How could it happen that the air strike was ordered and carried out despite the identification of the vehicles and the announcement of the convoy to the IDF? What consequences does the airstrike have on international solidarity with the country attacked by Hamas? In any case, the international reactions are unusually clear.
According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, the attack was due to suspected terrorism. The armed forces attacked the aid convoy because they suspected a terrorist was traveling with it, the paper reported, citing unnamed defense officials. A unit had identified an armed man on a truck shortly before the convoy entered a warehouse. When he left the hall, he was no longer part of the motorcade.
The operations center, which was responsible for the convoy’s approved route, nevertheless instructed the drone pilots to attack one of the vehicles with a missile. Some passengers left the vehicle that was hit and switched to one of the other two cars. They continued driving and even informed those responsible that they were being attacked. Seconds later, a second rocket hit their vehicle. A third rocket hit while the passengers were bringing the injured into the third vehicle.
Lack of discipline and high-handedness on the part of Israeli commanders in the Gaza Strip are, according to one, the reason for the deadly attack on foreign aid workers. Commanders and armed forces involved in the incident acted against instructions and rules, the paper wrote on Wednesday, citing military circles. However, coordination problems between the army and the aid organization World Central Kitchen were not the reason for the fatal attack. When asked, an Israeli army spokesman said they were checking the reports.
Note: This article has been updated with additional details.
Sources: DPA, AFP, , , , , , , .
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
