What will happen to aid to Gaza after the Israeli attack that killed foreign aid workers?

Founded in 2010 by Spanish chef José Andrés, the NGO World Central Cuisine (WCK) provided humanitarian aid with a single premise: sending food to those suffering from humanitarian crises, climate tragedies and wars. This was the work he had been doing for five months in the Gaza Strip, until a bombing Israeli He killed seven of his workers, raising questions about the future of aid in this much-needed area.

TO LOOK: World Central Kitchen, the NGO that was born after the devastating earthquake in Haiti in 2010

The aid workers were attacked while traveling aboard two armored cars marked with the WCK logo, despite having coordinated their movements with Israeli forces, the NGO said in a statement. Humanitarian workers left a warehouse in Deir el Balah, in central Gaza.

The act caused an immediate commotion. The dead are the first foreign aid workers killed in the Gaza war. The victims were from Australia, Poland, the United Kingdom, one of them with dual citizenship of the United States and Canada, and the Palestinian Territories.

A man displays British, Polish and Australian passports next to the bodies of World Central Kitchen workers at Al-Aqsa Hospital. (AFP photo). (-/)

While the Israeli Army continues to investigate what happened, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the death of the aid workers as “tragic” and acknowledged that it occurred due to an “unintentional” attack by his country’s forces.

“These are things that happen in a war (…), we are in contact with the governments and we will do everything possible to ensure that this does not happen again”, declared Netanyahu.

After the attack, a flotilla transporting humanitarian aid to Gaza began its journey back to its base in Cyprus, with much of the cargo not delivered.

According to the Efe agency, the operation managed to disembark around 100 of the 400 tons it was transporting through a maritime aid corridor to Gaza opened on March 12 and in which WCK and the NGO Open Arms collaborate.

This is a second flotilla that has brought aid to the region, following a first shipment in mid-March.

Previously, the WCK, which distributed tens of millions of meals to the population of Gaza, suspended its operations in Palestinian territory out of respect for the victims and to review security protocol.

World Central Kitchen is devastated to confirm that seven members of our team were killed in an IDF attack in Gaza. Read our full statement regarding the loss of our team members here: https://t.co/gsijamzfMU pic.twitter.com/PtQCxX5XrW

— World Central Cuisine (@WCKitchen) April 2, 2024

“This is not only an attack against WCK, but also against humanitarian organizations that intervene in the most dire situations, in which food is used as a weapon of war. It’s inexcusable”, denounced Erin Gore, general director of the NGO.

Despite this, the President of Cyprus, Nikos Hristodoulidis, assured that maritime humanitarian aid shipments to Gaza will continue, although logistics to ensure better security conditions may increase some deadlines.

Fears about the impact of the attack on humanitarian aid were fueled by statements from the UN humanitarian coordinator for the Palestinian territories, Jamie McGoldrick, who said that what happened to the WCK workers is not an isolated incident.

“As of March 20, at least 196 humanitarian workers had died in the Palestinian territories occupied since October 2023,” said McGoldrick, a number three times higher than those who died in any previous conflict during an entire year, Efe notes.

The bombing caused much of the international community to demand answers from Israel, including the United States, its main ally.

Washington demanded a “swift, complete and impartial” investigation into what happened, said Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who added that his country has spoken to the Israeli government to “make them understand that more needs to be done to protect the lives of innocent civilians.” , whether Palestinian children or aid workers.”

WCK teams mobilized daily in Gaza to distribute food to displaced Palestinians. Our more than 60 kitchens in southern and central Gaza prepare hundreds of thousands of meals every day, like this mujadara, a comforting dish of rice, lentils and caramelized onions. #ChefsForThePeople pic.twitter.com/zHF3oVlKCJ

— World Central Cuisine (@WCKitchen) April 1, 2024

The British Government took more concrete measures and recalled the Israeli ambassador in London, Tzipi Hotovely, due to the “unacceptable” and “horrible” death of British WCK collaborators in the Israeli attack.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he was “shocked and saddened” by the news and called for an urgent investigation because “there are clearly questions that need answers”.

Furthermore, Australia denounced what happened as a “completely unacceptable” act and Canada requested a “full investigation” of the Israeli attack. Spain, the United Kingdom, Poland and Germany also demanded explanations about what happened.

Source: Elcomercio