Israeli Drone Kills Five Central Kitchen Aid Workers

[toomuchtime_]

Statement from the WCK.


The IDF has acknowledged its responsibility and its fatal errors in the deadly attack on our convoy in Gaza. It is also taking disciplinary action against those in command and committed to other reforms. These are important steps forward.

However it is also clear from their preliminary investigation that the IDF has deployed deadly force without regard to its own protocols, chain of command and rules of engagement. The IDF has acknowledged that our teams followed all proper communications procedures. The IDF’s own video fails to show any cause to fire on our personnel convoy, which carried no weapons and posed no threat.

Without systemic change, there will be more military failures, more apologies and more grieving families.

The root cause of the unjustified rocket fire on our convoy is the severe lack of food in Gaza. Israel needs to dramatically increase the volume of food and medicine traveling by land if it is serious about supporting humanitarian aid.

Food is a universal human right. WCK is proud to have fed families across Israel after October 7, and we continue to demand the release of all hostages. At the same time, we believe Palestinian families have the same universal right to food, water and medicine. We know Israelis, deep down, share the same values.

We demand the creation of an independent commission to investigate the killings of our WCK colleagues. The IDF cannot credibly investigate its own failure in Gaza.

“It’s not enough to simply try to avoid further humanitarian deaths, which have now approached close to 200,” said WCK founder José Andrés. “All civilians need to be protected, and all innocent people in Gaza need to be fed and safe. And all hostages must be released.”

“Their apologies for the outrageous killing of our colleagues represent cold comfort,” said WCK CEO Erin Gore. “It’s cold comfort for the victims’ families and WCK’s global family.”Israel needs to take concrete steps to assure the safety of humanitarian aid workers. Our operations remain suspended.

World Central Kitchen | WCK’s statement about the IDF preliminary investigation

wck.org

They are grieving, so it is best to give them some space for now, but if they continue to try to make this a political issue or to cast aspersions on the integrity of the IDF investigation or make demands of the Israeli government on how to run the country or the war, perhaps it is best if they pack up their stuff and leave.

 

[odanny]

They are grieving, so it is best to give them some space for now, but if they continue to try to make this a political issue or to cast aspersions on the integrity of the IDF investigation or make demands of the Israeli government on how to run the country or the war, perhaps it is best if they pack up their stuff and leave.

What is it you find disagreeable with their statement? The part about an independant investigation? Or is it something else?

 

[Shusha]

Because of a failure of communication within the IDF, the fire unit that was following the convoy did not know they were there and were unable to call WCK workers by phone or through WCK headquarters, so they just saw an anonymous convoy that based on their experience looked like a Hamas convoy.

Yes, and ... there was evidence of a number of armed gunmen present in the aide warehouse during the same period of time as the aide workers.

The fire unit seemed to be aware of the gunmen, but not of the planned movement of the aide workers (which was the communication failure which led to the misidentification and, ultimately, their tragic deaths.)

 

[Billo_Really]

Palestinian news and Social Media report that an Israeli drone attack killed five World Central Kitchen workers in a three-car convoy traveling to Deir al-Balah in Central Gaza to feed starving people. Four were foreign Nationals from Poland, Australia, the UK, and Ireland. One was Palestinian, likely a translator for the group.

According to social media, the five workers were distributing food from four vessels owned by a nonprofit group in Cyprus in Northern Gaza and returning to Central Gaza after delivery. Aid groups had built a jetty, where the food was transported from the ships, loaded into cars, and driven to World Central Kitchen sites in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli drone kills five World Central Kitchen aid workers.

Palestinian news and Social Media report that an Israeli drone attack killed five World Central Kitchen workers in a three-car convoy traveling to Deir al-Balah in Central Gaza to feed starving people. Four were foreign Nationals from Poland,...

www.dailykos.com

FUCK ISRAEL

That's what I say, Fuck Israel!

 

[toomuchtime_]

What is it you find disagreeable with their statement? The part about an independant investigation? Or is it something else?

Israel had immediately announced that there would be two IDF investigations, an immediate one to identify what went wrong and a longer one to identify what the IDF could do to fix its failures in this incident, and an independent investigation, so there was no need to make an additional call for an independent investigation unless it was politically motivated. If they are truly committed to the work they are doing there, then they will have to find a way to trust the integrity of the IDF's efforts to correct the errors that led to this incident and work constructively to help them. If the work they are doing in Gaza is not important enough to them to do that, then they should their political opinions and leave.

 

[toomuchtime_]

Yes, and ... there was evidence of a number of armed gunmen present in the aide warehouse during the same period of time as the aide workers.

The fire unit seemed to be aware of the gunmen, but not of the planned movement of the aide workers (which was the communication failure which led to the misidentification and, ultimately, their tragic deaths.)

And all of their phones were off, so that neither the IDF nor WCK headquarters could contact them. Were they afraid of being tracked? Why? What were they doing?

 

[odanny]

https://worldcentralkitchen.cdn.prismic.io/worldcentralkitchen/Zg8DyhrFxhpPBUSx_Opinion_Jose%CC%81Andre%CC%81s_LetPeopleEat-TheNewYorkTimes.pdf

 

[Matted Joybeard]

In the strike on the WCK staff the responsible party is the judge, jury, and executioner in addition to be the oversight. It's reasonable to question Israel's rendition of what transpired given they have every motive to steer an investigation in their favor and stand to gain from the departure of international aid workers and the continuation of their war writ large on the entire populace of Gaza.