Biden and Netanyahu speak for first time since Israel killed aid workers in Gaza strike: Updates

Joe Biden has spoken with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the first time since the deadly strike on seven international aid workers in Gaza.

The call between the two leaders comes as Mr Biden faces increasing pressure from a growing chorus of voices who are fed up with what they perceive as a callous refusal to rein in Israeli violations of international humanitarian law.

Humanitarian food charity World Central Kitchen has called for an independent investigation into the strike that killed seven of its aid workers on Monday.

WCK issued a statement on Thursday morning calling for the governments of Australia, Canada, the US, the UK and Poland – the countries from which six of the workers hailed – to join a third-party investigation into the drone bombardment on the charity’s convoy.

The investigation must establish “whether [the drone strikes] were carried out intentionally or otherwise violated international law”, it said in a statement on Thursday.

On Tuesday Mr Biden delivered some of his strongest criticism of Israel since it began its war on Hamas, saying he was “outraged and heartbroken” by the deaths of the humanitarian workers.

“Israel has not done enough to protect aid workers trying to deliver desperately needed help to civilians,” the president said in a statement.

Mr Netanyahu wrote on X that Israel “deeply regrets” the deaths of the aid workers.

The Independent’s International Correspondent Bel Trew reports on the British link to the Israeli drone that killed seven aid workers in Gaza on Monday.

Her story can be read here.

As more details emerged about the bombing and its victims, CAAT accused the UK of being “complicit in the murder of UK aid workers” and said it must halt arms sales to