Israel-Gaza war: Foreign aid workers killed – Iran threatens to kill generals

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Paramedics with the body of a World Central Kitchen employee on April 1, 2024

Photo: Video Obtained By Reuters / REUTERS

According to the aid organization World Central Kitchen (WCK), seven of its employees were killed in a suspected Israeli air strike in the Gaza Strip. In addition to aid workers from Australia, Great Britain and Poland, a Palestinian employee and a person with US-Canadian citizenship were also killed.

According to the aid organization, a convoy was hit even though the vehicles had a WCK logo and the planned trips were coordinated with the Israeli military. The aid organization describes the incident as “unforgivable.”

"The Israeli government must stop this indiscriminate killing," wrote the organization's founder, the US-based Spanish celebrity chef José Andrés, on the X platform (formerly Twitter) early Tuesday morning.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed the death of an Australian aid worker and strongly condemned the attack. "This is a tragedy that should never have happened," Australian media quoted Albanese as saying on Tuesday. His government contacted the Israeli government directly about the incident.

Israel's army investigates circumstances of "tragic incident"

Israel's army wrote on Telegram that the military was "conducting a thorough investigation at the highest level to understand the circumstances of this tragic incident."

WCK says it served more than 42 million meals in the Gaza Strip in 175 days. The organization also sent a ship with relief supplies from Cyprus to the Gaza Strip in mid-March. The mission was considered a pilot project to improve supplies for more than two million people in the Gaza Strip, who are currently lacking virtually everything because of the war.

Israel must stop using food as a weapon

Israel must stop restricting humanitarian aid, killing civilians and aid workers, and using food as a weapon, wrote the organization's founder, José Andrés. »No more innocent deaths. Peace begins with our shared humanity. “It has to start now,” he added.

Photos and video footage that circulated on social media overnight are said to show the World Central Kitchen employees who were killed. You can see their bodies in protective vests and their blood-smeared passports. According to Palestinian information, the Australian woman and her colleagues as well as their Palestinian driver were in the process of delivering relief supplies at the time of the air strike, wrote the newspaper "The Sydney Morning Herald." They had arrived in Gaza just a few hours earlier on a ship from Cyprus.

Meanwhile, the Israeli army's statement said its own forces were making extensive efforts to enable the safe delivery of humanitarian aid. They worked closely with World Central Kitchen to provide food and humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza.

USA and Israel plan meetings on Rafah offensive

Representatives of the US government and the Israeli leadership are expected to meet next week to discuss Israel's planned ground offensive in the southern city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip. After a video link with representatives from both sides, the White House released a joint statement on Monday promising a face-to-face meeting next week.

Both sides shared the goal of defeating Hamas in Rafah, it said. "The US side expressed its concerns about various approaches in Rafah." The Israeli side, in turn, has agreed to take these concerns into account and to hold further discussions. Israel wants to destroy the last Hamas battalions in Rafah near the Egyptian border. The US government believes that a large-scale ground offensive would be wrong because of the hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civilians who have sought protection from the fighting there and would like to show Israel alternatives.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard confirms death of generals in Syria

After the suspected Israeli air strike in Syria, Iran's Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) have confirmed the death of two generals from their ranks. The two brigadier generals Mohammed Reza Zahedi and Mohammad Hadi Haji Rahimi were killed in the attack on the consular section of the Iranian embassy in the capital Damascus, the IRGC said on Monday evening. Five other members of the Revolutionary Guard were killed in the attack.

Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani strongly condemned the attack and blamed Israel's arch-enemy for the killing of the generals. "The dimensions of this hateful attack are being investigated, and responsibility for its consequences lies with the aggressive Zionist regime," said the spokesman, according to a statement from his ministry. “The Islamic Republic of Iran reserves the right to take countermeasures and will decide on the nature of the response.” Experts have already expressed concern that some in Iran could see the attack as a declaration of war. However, how and whether Iran's state power will react is completely open.

In the Iranian capital Tehran, several hundred government supporters gathered in the city center late on Monday evening for spontaneous protests, eyewitnesses reported. The crowd demanded revenge for the killing of the generals. They shouted, among other things, “Death to Israel” and “Death to America.”

Israel's air force repeatedly bombs targets in neighboring Syria in an attempt to prevent Iran and its allied militias such as the Lebanese Hezbollah from expanding their military influence in the country. Attacks have increased since the Gaza war began almost six months ago. Iranian military personnel are officially only active in Syria in an advisory capacity. However, Tehran is considered the Syrian government's most important ally alongside Russia. A civil war has been raging in the country since 2011.

USA reaffirms Israel's right to defense

The USA is Israel's most important protecting power and supports the country with billions of dollars every year, a significant part of which goes towards missile defense and other military technology. However, relations between the two countries are currently very tense given the high number of civilian casualties in the Gaza war. In response to Israel's conduct of the war, calls are growing to restrict arms sales to the ally. Armament deliveries to the country sometimes take several years, said US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller on Monday in Washington.

Israel is surrounded by actors who are bent on its destruction, not only Hamas, but also Iran and its proxies, such as the Lebanese Hezbollah militia. "We believe that Israel has every right to defend itself against these opponents," said Miller. The Washington Post reported on Friday, citing unnamed officials in the Pentagon and the State Department, that the US government had "quietly" approved new bombs and fighter jets for Israel in recent days.

aka/dpa/Reuters