IDF Chief Addresses WCK Volunteers Accidentally Killed in Gaza

April 3, 2024

by: Yoav Zitun ~ Ynetnews

Wednesday, 3 April 2024 | Israel Defense Forces [IDF] Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi addressed Tuesday overnight the incident in which seven World Central Kitchen [WCK] volunteers were accidentally killed by military forces, saying, “It was a mistake that followed a misidentification—at night during a war in very complex conditions. It shouldn’t have happened.”

In a statement released by the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit in English, Halevi said, “Last night, seven employees of the WCK were killed. WCK is an organization whose people work across the globe, including in Israel, to do good deeds in difficult conditions. The IDF works closely with the WCK and greatly appreciates the important work that they do.

“The IDF completed a preliminary debriefing. I want to be very clear; the strike wasn’t carried out with the intention of harming WCK aid workers,” Halevi added. “The initial findings were just presented to me here in the Southern Command. I also visited the new Humanitarian Command Center we established today to improve the way we coordinate aid distribution in Gaza.

“This incident was a grave mistake. Israel is at a war with Hamas, not with the people of Gaza,” Halevi added. “We are sorry for the unintentional harm to the members of WCK workers. We’re sharing the grief of their families as well as the entire WCK.

“An independent body will investigate the incident thoroughly,” Halevi said. “We will complete it in the next coming days. We will learn from the conclusions and implement them immediately. We will share, in full transparency, the findings of the investigation with the WCK and other international relevant organizations. We see great importance in our continued delivery of humanitarian aid. To keep working to facilitate this vital effort.”

Posted on April 3, 2024

Source: (Excerpt from an article originally published Ynetnews on April 3, 2024. Time-related language has been modified to reflect our republication today. See original article at this link.)

Photo Credit: IDF Spokesperson's Unit/Wikimedia.org

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