World Central Kitchen (WCK) said seven aid workers have been killed in Gaza from countries including the UK, Poland and Australia were killed.
WCK founder and chef José Andrés said they were killed “in an IDF air strike”. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it was conducting a “thorough review”.
WCK later said in a statement that seven of its team had been killed and were Australian, Polish, British, Palestinian and a dual US-Canadian citizen.
“I am heartbroken and appalled that we – World Central Kitchen and the world – lost beautiful lives today because of a targeted attack by the IDF.
“The love they had for feeding people, the determination they embodied to show that humanity rises above all, and the impact they made in countless lives will forever be remembered and cherished,” the charity’s CEO Erin Gore said in a statement.
Gore said WCK was pausing its operations immediately in the region.
She added that those killed were part of a convoy that was hit while leaving the Deir al-Balah warehouse in central Gaza, “where the team had unloaded more than 100 tons of humanitarian food aid brought to Gaza on the maritime route.”
Adrienne Watson, a spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, said on X: “We are heartbroken and deeply troubled by the strike that killed [WCK] aid workers in Gaza.
“Humanitarian aid workers must be protected as they deliver aid that is desperately needed, and we urge Israel to swiftly investigate what happened.”
The charity recently made headlines for providing hundreds of tonnes of food for Gazans that arrived on the first aid ship.
Commenting on the reports, the IDF said it was conducting a thorough review at the highest level to understand the circumstances of this “tragic incident”.
“The IDF makes extensive efforts to enable the safe delivery of humanitarian aid, and has been working closely with WCK in their vital efforts to provide food and humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza,” it added.
Prior to confirmation that an Australian national had been killed in the incident, the Australian foreign ministry said: “We have been very clear that we expect humanitarian workers in Gaza to have safe and unimpeded access to do their lifesaving work.”
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