Those killed in the incident in central Gaza’s Deir al-Balah included citizens of Poland, Australia and Britain, as well as one Palestinian, a spokesperson for the media office said.
“We are aware of reports that members of the World Central Kitchen team have been killed in an IDF attack while working to support our humanitarian food delivery efforts in Gaza,” WCK posted on X. “This is a tragedy. Humanitarian aid workers and civilians should never be a target ever.”
In a statement, Hamas said the attack aimed to “terrorise” workers of international humanitarian agencies and deter them from pursuing their missions.
Commenting on the reports, the Israeli military said it was conducting a thorough review at the highest levels to understand the circumstances of what it called a 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,” the military statement said.
Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Tuesday confirmed that aid worker Lalzawmi “Zomi” Frankcom had been killed in an air strike in Gaza and demanded accountability for her death.
At least 32,845 Palestinians have been killed and 75,392 injured in Israel’s military offensive in the Gaza Strip since Oct 7, the Palestinian enclave’s health ministry said on Monday.
There have been 63 Palestinians killed and 94 injured in the past 24 hours, the ministry statement added.
