5 aid workers killed in Israeli airstrikes in Gaza World Central Kitchen has “lost many of our sisters and brothers,” its president Jose Andres said on X (formerly Twitter) today. According to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, four of the victims were foreigners. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed the death of a civilian and urged the safety of aid workers.
“This is a tragedy that should never happen,” Albanese said of the attack on the World Central Kitchen (WCK) vehicle, according to Australian media. His government contacted the Israeli government directly about the incident “beyond all reasonable circumstances”.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Canberra asked to invite the Israeli ambassador. The head of government stressed that “people and civilians providing humanitarian aid must be protected”.
Killed while on the job, according to WCK
WCK founder Andres – a Spanish celebrity chef living in the US – was also critical. He called on the Israeli government to stop the “indiscriminate killings”. “It must stop restricting humanitarian aid, stop killing civilians and aid workers, and stop using food as a weapon.” A separate statement by the organization said the aid workers were “killed while working in support of our humanitarian mission to support food deliveries to Gaza.”
World Central Kitchen operates community kitchens in the Gaza Strip with local partners that prepare meals for the Palestinian people. The organization has also been involved in seaborne aid deliveries from Cyprus to the war zone since March.
