UK, Australia and Canada condemn decision not to pursue criminal probe of 2024 Gaza aid convoy strike

Britain, Australia and Canada have jointly condemned a decision by Israeli military authorities not to open a criminal investigation into the April 2024 airstrikes that killed seven World Central Kitchen workers in Gaza.

The three governments said the victims and their families deserved justice and accountability. Nationals of all three countries were among those killed when the aid organisation’s marked convoy was struck after coordinating its movements with the Israeli military.

The Israeli military said it had mistaken people in the vehicles for armed Hamas operatives and that the convoy had departed from a previously coordinated route. It concluded that commanders’ decisions did not create reasonable suspicion of criminal misconduct. Two officers were removed from their posts after the attack and three others were reprimanded.

World Central Kitchen rejected the decision, saying it did not account for the full circumstances of the attack. Poland, whose citizen Damian Soból was also killed, called for cooperation with its own investigation.

The latest diplomatic criticism renews scrutiny of protections for humanitarian personnel in Gaza and of the mechanisms used to investigate fatal military incidents involving aid workers.