Israel’s ‘serious military failures’ led to Gaza aid workers’ deaths, says Australia

An Australian government review has found that “serious failures” by the Israeli military led to drone strikes on an aid convoy that killed seven workers in Gaza.

The strike on 1 April killed charity workers from the World Central Kitchen (WCK) from Australia, Canada, Poland, the UK and the US, as well as their Palestinian colleague.

The review, released on Friday, concluded that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) failed to follow procedures and made identification and decision-making errors.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the Australian government would “press for full accountability” for those responsible for the incident, “including any appropriate criminal charges”.

“The military advocate general of Israel is still to decide on further action,” she said in a statement on Friday.

The IDF had launched an internal investigation amid intense international pressure and sacked senior officers after acknowledging that the strike was a “serious failure” and a “grave mistake”.

The charity’s team had been authorised by the Israeli military to help transfer aid supplies from the coast to a warehouse. The convoy was hit in the Gazan city of Deir al-Balah when drone operators did not follow rules and thought WCK’s cars were carrying Hamas gunmen, the IDF’s inquiry said.

WCK founder José Andrés had accused Israeli forces of targeting his aid workers “systematically, car by car”.

While WCK recognised at the time that the IDF’s admission of failure was an important step forward, it called for an independent investigation into the deadly attack.

“It is also clear from their preliminary investigation that the IDF has deployed deadly force without regard to its own protocols, chain of command and rules of engagement,” WCK said in a statement in April.

“We demand the creation of an independent commission to investigate the killings of our WCK colleagues. The IDF cannot credibly investigate its own failure in Gaza.”

Shortly after the attack, the Australian government appointed former defence force chief Mark Binskin as a special advisor on a review into the WCK workers’ deaths.

Ms Wong said at the time that Mr Binskin would examine the “sufficiency and appropriateness of the steps taken by the Israeli government” in relation to the incident.

Following the release of the review on Friday, Ms Wong said the Australian government would implement all of Mr Binskin’s recommendations, including calls for Israel to improve coordination with humanitarian organisations working on the ground.

The IDF had also said that it had formally reprimanded three commanders for their overall responsibility in the strikes, and that those who carried out the attack could face criminal prosecution.

Ms Wong said Israel is still in the process of determining accountability.

“Our expectation remains that there be transparency about the military advocate general’s process and decision,” she added.

More than 250 aid workers have been killed in Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to the United Nations.