The Israeli military said on Tuesday that an independent, professional expert body would investigate the deaths of seven people working for the World Central Kitchen in Gaza, which the NGO said was the result of an Israeli air strike. Shortly afterward, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday lamented the killing in an alleged Israeli strike, describing the incident as tragic and unintended.
"This happens in wartime. We are thoroughly looking into it, are in contact with the governments (of the foreigners among the dead), and will do everything to ensure it does not happen again," Netanyahu said in a video statement.
Video: IDF Spokesperson talks about tragic killing of World Central Kitchen / Credit:IDF
Israeli military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said the incident would be investigated in the "Fact Finding and Assessment Mechanism," which his statement called an "independent, professional, and expert body" without giving details.
He said he had spoken to the WCK founder, Chef Jose Andres and expressed his deepest condolences. "We also express sincere sorrow to our allied nations who have been doing and continue to do so much to assist those in need," he said in the statement.
The killed workers were traveling in two armored WCK cars when the convoy was hit on Monday as it was leaving a warehouse after unloading more than 100 tons of humanitarian food aid brought to Gaza by sea, WCK said.
Footage showed the bodies, several wearing protective gear with the charity's logo, at a hospital in the central Gaza town of Deir al-Balah. Those killed include three British nationals, an Australian, a Polish national, an American-Canadian dual citizen and a Palestinian, according to hospital records.
Andrés – whose charity operates in several countries wracked by wars or natural disasters, including Israel after the Oct. 7 attack that triggered the current conflict – said he was "heartbroken" by the deaths of his colleagues.
"The Israeli government needs to stop this indiscriminate killing. It needs to stop restricting humanitarian aid, stop killing civilians and aid workers, and stop using food as a weapon," he wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
