American-Canadian aid worker among seven killed in airstrike on Gaza as Biden poised to sell jets to Israel

Sevenhumanitarian aid workers, including a dual citizen of the US and Canada, have been killed by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza.

World Central Kitchen — a non-profit humanitarian aid organisation founded by celebrity chef José Andrés — said on Tuesday that seven of their members travelling in cars branded with the organisation’s logo were killed in an airstrike by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

The IDF launched the airstrike despite the organisation coordinating their movements with the military, World Central Kitchen said in a statement.

“This is not only an attack against WCK, this is an attack on humanitarian organizations showing up in the most dire of situations where food is being used as a weapon of war,” World Central Kitchen CEO Erin Gore said. “This is unforgivable.”

Meanwhile, the IDF told World Central Kitchen that it is “carrying out an in-depth examination at the highest levels to understand the circumstances of this tragic incident.”

The aid World Central Kitchen was providing is particularly essential as the United Nations and other international organizations warn that famine is now closing in on Gaza. Since 7 October — when Hamas militants attacked Israel and killed some 1,200 people while taking more than 200 people hostage — more than 32,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel began its offensive into Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Just hours before the organisation announced the deaths, reports emerged that President Joe Biden’s administration is close to securing a deal for an $18bn sale of fighter jets to Israel. It’s unclear how the Biden administration will now respond, given that just two months ago Mr Biden said, “If you harm an American, we will respond.”

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