Australia: Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister of Australia, has criticised Israel’s justification for the killing of seven aid workers in Gaza as inadequate. The outrage over the attack is maintaining a global impact.
Among the seven employees of World Central Kitchen (WCK) who died when their convoy was hit by an Israeli air strike in central Gaza was Australian woman Zomi Frankcom. It was previously reported that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) carried out a targeted attack which resulted in the deaths of a US-Canadian dual citizen, a Pole, a Palestinian, and three nationals of the United Kingdom.
Earlier this week, Albanese described the death of Frankcom as being ‘beyond any reasonable circumstances.’ He expressed that he found Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s statements about innocent people being killed in war to be unacceptable.
“We need to have accountability for how it has occurred, and what is not good enough is the statements that have been made, including that this is just a product of war. This is against humanitarian law. International humanitarian law makes it very clear that aid workers should be able to provide that aid and that assistance free of the threat of losing their life,” the Australian PM said.
Albanese stated that, “Frankcom’s vehicle had been clearly identified as belonging to an aid organisation and should not have been at risk. Her being killed in this way is a catastrophic event that is devastating for her family but is also felt keenly by our nation.”
To ensure accountability, the Australian leader demanded that Israel conduct a transparent investigation. It was also urged in a statement made by US Vice President Joe Biden.
“There have been too many innocent lives lost in Gaza. It shouldn’t be the case that innocent Palestinians or people assisting them are made to pay the price for the actions of the terrorist group Hamas,” the Australian PM added.
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