The Israeli army has concluded its probe into the 2024 drone strikes that killed seven humanitarian workers from the World Central Kitchen (WCK). No criminal investigation is warranted. No explanation was provided.
The decision not to pursue criminal responsibility for the attack was slammed by Western states as “shameful”. Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand called it “unacceptable”. The Australian government said it was “outraged”.
The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared it was “disappointed”. If Western states are indeed dissatisfied with the outcome of the Israeli probe, then they should investigate the crime themselves. They have the institutional capacity and legal right to do so.
Not pursuing an investigation would mean they accept Israeli impunity for the killing of their aid workers in Gaza. Images taken in the wake of the drone strikes on the WCK convoy show a charred hole where Israeli missiles breached the roof of the organisation’s vehicles – right next to its logo. The three cars in the WCK convoy were clearly marked, and their movements across the Gaza Strip were coordinated in real time with Israeli forces.
Such precautions were not enough to protect the lives of Lalzawmi Frankcom (Australia, 43 years old), Damian Sobol (Poland, 35), Saifeddin Issam Ayad Abutaha (Palestine, 25), Jacob Flickinger (dual citizen of the US and Canada, 33), or British citizens John Chapman (57), James Henderson (33) and James Kirby (47). They are among the more than 1,000 humanitarian aid workers killed in Gaza since 2023. The attack on the WCK convoy has the hallmarks of a potential war crime.
Canada’s Anand intimated as much when she referred to the laws of armed conflict in stating that “Canada expects international humanitarian law to be upheld”. Importantly, even if the attack was conducted in error, as Israel has claimed, it may still constitute a war crime. Calling an attack a “tragic mistake” is not a magic wand that absolves perpetrators of responsibility.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
