World Central Kitchen: Seven employees killed in Israeli attack

The aid organization World Central Kitchen has confirmed the deaths of seven of its employees in the Gaza Strip in an airstrike and blamed Israel for it. “The WCK team was traveling in a conflict-free zone in two armored vehicles with the WCK logo and one unprotected vehicle,” the organization wrote in a statement on Tuesday. In view of the fatal incident, the organization will immediately stop its operations in the region and will soon make decisions “about the future of our work.”

Israel’s military said it was conducting “a thorough, high-level investigation to understand the circumstances of this tragic incident.”

The convoy was hit even though the trip had been coordinated with the Israeli army, the aid organization wrote. 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.

“This is not just an attack on WCK, this is an attack on humanitarian organizations that find themselves in dire situations where food is used as a weapon in war,” said the organization’s executive director, Erin Gore. “This is unforgivable.”

International victims

According to the statement, the seven victims came from Australia, Poland, Great Britain and the Palestinian territories – and one of the victims also had American and Canadian US citizenship.

“I am heartbroken and horrified that we – World Central Kitchen and the world – lost beautiful lives today because of a targeted attack by the Israeli army,” Gore said. “The love they had for feeding people, the determination they embodied to show that humanity transcends all, and the impact they had on countless lives will forever be remembered and honored.”

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The family of an employee from Australia said the 43-year-old was killed “while doing the work she loved.” She will “leave a legacy of compassion, courage and love for everyone around her.”