World Central Kitchen aid convoy attack

World Central Kitchen aid convoy attack
Part of the Israel–Hamas war
Image of World Central Kitchen car after IDF strike
Aid convoy attacks
Location	Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories
Coordinates	31°25′0.05″N 34°19′44.4″E / 31.4166806°N 34.329000°E / 31.4166806; 34.329000
Date	1 April 2024
Target	Three World Central Kitchen cars
Attack type	Drone strikes
Deaths	7
Perpetrators	Israel Defense Forces

The World Central Kitchen aid convoy attack occurred on 1 April 2024, when Israeli drones targeted a three-car convoy belonging to the World Central Kitchen (WCK) in the Gaza Strip, killing seven aid workers.^[1][2] The attack occurred despite the WCK having coordinated their route with the Israeli military, which both parties have acknowledged.^[3][4] The workers had been overseeing the transfer of a shipment of food from a makeshift pier to a warehouse some distance away in the northern Gaza Strip, which has been pushed close to famine by Israel's invasion and blockade during the Israel–Hamas war.^[5][3]

The attack occurred three days after a unanimous ICJ ruling in the ongoing Genocide Convention case that ordered Israel to ensure the unhindered flow of aid into Gaza.^[6] The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) acknowledged that their drone operators fired three missiles in five minutes at three of the WCK's cars, with some survivors of the first strike boarding the second car, which was minutes later hit by a second missile. Some survivors of the second strike boarding the third car, which was in turn struck by a third missile.^[3] All seven aid workers were killed, and their bodies were sent to Shuhada al-Aqsa Hospital. They held Australian, British, Palestinian, Polish, and dual American-Canadian citizenships.^[5]

Israel claimed responsibility for the killings, and its military launched an investigation into the incident, which led to the dismissal of two officers.^[3] The investigation was rejected as lacking credibility by the WCK, which stated that the IDF cannot investigate its own wrongdoings.^[7] WCK founder, Spanish chef José Andrés, has said Israel attacked the convoy "systematically" and "deliberately".^[8] WCK called for an independent, third-party investigation into the attacks including whether they were carried out intentionally or otherwise violated international law.^[9][10]

The attack drew widespread international condemnation, including by Australia, Qatar, Ireland, Egypt, Poland, China, the Holy See, the European Union, and the United States.^[11][12] The attack led the World Central Kitchen to pause its operations in the Gaza Strip, along with other humanitarian and aid organizations operating there.^[13] Statements made by the Israeli ambassador in Poland on the incident led to a diplomatic spat between the two countries.^[14] The event led to widespread allegations from political scientists, commentators, and genocide scholars that Israel is deliberately using starvation as a weapon of war, which is a war crime.^[12]