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Global politicians criticise Israel for World Central Kitchen decision

Foreign ministers from Canada, Australia, and Poland have said they are "outraged" by the IDF's decision not to persue criminal charges over the death of aid workers

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The IDF is not further investigating the deaths of seven World Central Kitchen workers in Gaza
The IDF is not further investigating the deaths of seven World Central Kitchen workers in Gaza. Picture: Getty

By Sophie Clark

Numerous global politicians have condemned the Israeli government over its decision not to further investigate the deaths of aid workers in Gaza.

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Seven aid workers including three Brits, a dual Canadian-US citizen, a Polish man, an Australian woman, and a Palestinian man were killed while working for World Central Kitchen (WCK) in Gaza on August 1, 2024, by IDF airstrikes on their marked humanitarian vehicles.

Politicians from Australia, Canada, and Poland, have now criticised the Israeli government’s recent announcement that they will not be pursuing criminal charges over the event.

The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on X that it “Takes the position that the circumstances in which the tragedy occurred in 2024 should be fully clarified and does not accept the perpetrators' evasion of legal and moral responsibility. The families deserve appropriate redress.”

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Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Penny Wong, stated that Australia is “outraged” by the government’s decision not to pursue criminal proceedings into those responsible for the death of Australian aid worker Zomi Frankcom.

Wong added: “Zomi represented the best of Australia.”

And, Canadian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Anita Anand, said on X: “The IDF’s decision not to pursue a criminal investigation into the killing of seven World Central Kitchen humanitarian workers, including Jacob Flickinger, a Canadian citizen, is unacceptable.

“Serious failures were identified in the conduct of the strike, and closing the case without further accountability leaves their families without the answers they have sought for more than two years.”

According to the IDF, the strike on the WCK vehicles was justified because they had reportedly identified a gunman on a truck in the humanitarian aid convoy while it was on a route to a warehouse.

The IDF said that it has reason to believe that suspicious activity was occurring, and concluded “there is no reasonable suspicion of criminal misconduct that would justify the opening of a criminal investigation or the taking of additional measures against any of those involved in the incident.”

WCK refuted these claims, stating: “At the time of the lethal attacks, the IDF knew that our team in Gaza was unarmed and posing a threat to nobody. It had full visual clarity on our clearly marked humanitarian vehicles during the extended, multiple airstrikes. It knew our team’s movements, identities and activities in advance.

“The military investigation conflates different timelines and events, muddies the story and shifts the blame for the IDF’s illegal conduct.”