United States: The President of the United States, Joe Biden, has criticised the killing of seven aid workers in Gaza, saying that he is ‘outraged and heartbroken’ over the deaths. The Israeli airstrike on the World Central Kitchen (WCK) convoy claimed the lives of Australians, British and Polish citizens, a dual Canadian-American citizen, and Palestinians.
The US President stated that, “I am outraged and heartbroken by the deaths of seven humanitarian workers from World Central Kitchen, including one American, in Gaza yesterday. They were providing food to hungry civilians in the middle of a war. They were brave and selfless. Their deaths are a tragedy.”
Joe Biden insisted that Israel must conduct a swift investigation into the incident and bring accountability while making the results public. The US politician accused Israel of not adequately protecting aid workers who are trying to deliver much-needed aid to civilians.
According to him, it is one of the main reasons why it is so hard to distribute humanitarian aid in Gaza. Biden urged Israel to coordinate their military processes with Hamas to ensure that humanitarian operations are not disrupted. Additionally, he criticised Israel for not doing enough to protect civilians.
“I will continue to press Israel to do more to facilitate that aid. And we are pushing hard for an immediate ceasefire as part of a hostage deal,” the President added. He expressed his condolences to Chef Jose Andres, founder of World Central Kitchen, on the death of the aid workers.
Australian PM Anthony Albanese and British PM Rishi Sunak also expressed their anger and concerns over the incident. Following the death of the humanitarian workers, WCK paused its aid operations in Gaza and will soon make decisions about the future of its operations.
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