LIVE GAZA. International World Central Kitchen employees killed in Israeli airstrike on Gaza | Israel-Palestine conflict

The Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed that humanitarian worker Lalzawmi ‘Zomi’ Frankcom, an Australian citizen, has been killed by the Israeli attack that killed several international and a Palestinian worker World Central Kitchen have died. He demands justice for her death and that of her colleagues.

Japan has a ended the suspension of payments to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWAJapanese news agency Jiji reports.

Also the The European Union, Canada, Australia, Sweden and Finland have resumed payments to UNRWA in recent weeks. The United StatesIsrael’s most important ally, are correct formalized that they will not make any payments to UNRWA until March 2025.

Several countries suspended funding following Israeli accusations about the involvement of UNRWA personnel in the October 7 attack on Israel. This would involve twelve employees. More than 13,000 people work for the UN organization in the Gaza StripThat is also active in the West Bank and in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

Established by the UN General Assembly in 1949, UNRWA supports six million Palestinian refugees in various countries and is the largest provider of humanitarian aid in Gaza.

At least five employees of the World Central Kitchen, an organization that provides humanitarian aid in Gaza, were killed by a Israeli airstrike in Deir al Balah in central Gaza. Palestinian authorities in Gaza report this.

“They have the British, Australian and Polish nationality. The nationality of the fourth person is not known,” it said Hamas Ministry of Health. The fifth victim is a Palestinian driver and translator. An AFP correspondent saw five bodies and three foreign passports in the hospital.

Australian authorities say they are trying to confirm reports of the death of an Australian citizen in Gaza.

World Central Kitchen said in a message on X that it was “aware of reports that members of the WCK team were killed in an IDF attack.” “This is a tragedy. Humanitarian workers and civilians should NEVER be targeted.”

World Central Kitchen is involved in the delivery of emergency aid to the Gaza Strip by boat from Cyprus and the construction of a temporary jetty. The first ship was able to dock and unload in mid-March under the supervision of the Israeli army.

Founder of World Central Kitchen José Andrés stated on X that “WCK lost several sisters and brothers today in an Israeli army airstrike in Gaza”. “The Israeli government must stop these indiscriminate killings“, he also wrote. “She has to stop restricting humanitarian aid, killing civilians and aid workers and using food as a weapon. No more innocent lives lost. Peace begins with our shared humanity. It has to start now.”

It Israeli military says it is conducting “a thorough investigation at the highest level.” to “understand the circumstances of this tragic incident.”

Israel has indicated that it will take into account US concerns about the planned Israeli offensive on Rafah, in the south of the Gaza Strip. It reports that White Houseafter a virtual meeting between Israeli and American officials.

An Israeli delegation should have traveled to Washington last week to discuss Rafah. Ultimately, Israel canceled the visit after the UN Security Council passed a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip without US opposition. A virtual meeting took place on Monday.

During the two-hour period “constructive” conversation, the US “expressed concerns about various plans of action for Rafah,” the White House said in a press release. “The The Israeli side has agreed to take those concerns into account and hold talks between experts soon.”

A “physical meeting” would be possible “starting next week”, the White House said.

On the American side the National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Secretary of State Antony Blinken join the conversation. For the Israelis these were the Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer and National Security Advisor Tzahi Hanegbi.

The USAan ally of Israel, oppose a large-scale ground offensive in Rafahbecause hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civilians reside there.

Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh stated earlier in the day that purpose of the meeting was “to understand what their plans are for any kind of operation in Rafah, how they are going to move and where they are going to conduct operations in a very densely populated region, of more than a million people“.

It Death toll following Israeli attacks on an annex of the Iranian embassy in Damascus has risen to eleven. This was reported by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).

The dead are “eight Iranians, two Syrians and a Lebanese, all combatants, no civilians”, said the director of the SOHR. The organization is based in the United Kingdom, but has a large network of informants in Syria.

Iran previously said that two leaders of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard were killed in the attack, as were five fighters. Among the two killed ringleaders is Mohammad Reza Zahedi, according to the SOHR, the “commander of the Quds Force (the branch of the Revolutionary Guard operating abroad, ed.) for Syria, Lebanon and Palestine”.

Tehran already promised to give a “decisive response” to the attack and spoke of one “violation of international conventions”.

Several Iranian military officials have been attacked in Syria in the past. At the end of December, an important general of the Quds Brigade was also killed by a rocket attack in the south of Damascus. The Monday’s attack was the fifth in Syria in a week.

Israel has carried out hundreds of attacks against government targets, pro-Iranian groups such as Hezbollah and military targets since the start of Syria’s civil war in 2011. Since the start of the Gaza war against Hamas, an ally of Hezbollah and Iran, Israel has increased the number of attacks.