'Outraged' Biden says Israel 'not done enough' to protect aid workers in Gaza

W460

President Joe Biden has voiced strong criticism of Israel following a strike that killed seven aid workers in Gaza, saying it has not done enough to protect such workers.

"Incidents like yesterday's simply should not happen. Israel has also not done enough to protect civilians," Biden said in a statement Tuesday.

Biden said he was "outraged and heartbroken" by the death on Monday of the World Central Kitchen workers, adding that distributing aid in the Palestinian territory has been difficult "because Israel has not done enough to protect aid workers trying to deliver desperately needed help to civilians."

In a strongly worded statement Biden said Israel's investigation of the strike "must be swift, it must bring accountability, and its findings must be made public."

Biden and other U.S. officials have expressed growing frustration with Israel as its unrelenting war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip in response to the October 7 Hamas attack sends civilian deaths soaring.

The seven staffers from the U.S.-based food aid charity were killed when a strike hit their convoy in the Gazan town of Deir al-Balah.

Biden said the death of the aid workers was not a "stand alone incident." The United Nations says the war has left almost 200 aid workers dead.

"This conflict has been one of the worst in recent memory in terms of how many aid workers have been killed," Biden said in his statement.

He said the United States will continue to press Israel to let more aid into Gaza and to allow "an immediate ceasefire as part of a hostage deal."

Israel's army acknowledged on Wednesday it had committed a "grave mistake."

Israeli Defense Forces Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, in a message posted on social media platform X, blamed "a misidentification -- at night during a war in very complex conditions."

Comments 8
Thumb chrisrushlau 03 April 2024, 21:13

"Outrage" comes from the French "outre", meaning "outside". Biden has been outside since he was a little kid.

Thumb chrisrushlau 04 April 2024, 06:13

Hindustan Times story on YouTube 108,512 views Apr 2, 2024 #rishisunak #vladimirputin #putin
Only 8 percent of Ukrainians are willing to fight on the battlefield against Russia in the war that has been raging for more than two years now. “Certainly, many people are willing to act, to send donations or work as volunteers. But facing a direct risk to life and taking part in military action – that is much harder… We estimate that the share of those willing to take arms is roughly 8% across all categories,” said Volodymyr Paniotto, head of International Institute for Sociology in Kyiv which reportedly conducted the poll.

Missing 1948 04 April 2024, 04:11

more proof that Zionist are war criminals and thugs.

Missing phillipo 04 April 2024, 11:15

Whilst the people who refused to accept their own independent Palestinian State in 1947/8 and their decendents who continue their dreams, are complete idiots.

Thumb i.report 04 April 2024, 22:40

Don't worry 1948; Zionism is doomed to fail and collapse; it will vanish in the next years, and as you know, the two-state solution is no longer feasible due to unlawful land acquisitions in the West Bank. The only answer left is to establish one state for all, Palestine, where Jews, Christians, and Muslims may cohabit. I neglected to mention that the state will no longer be a Jewish state, and those who refuse to embrace the new reality will return to their native Europe.

Thumb chrisrushlau 04 April 2024, 20:01

It turns out, according to Al Jazeera, that Israel hit this aid convoy with three separate strikes. AJ has a map. Imagine being in the convoy after the first and then the second strikes.

Thumb chrisrushlau 06 April 2024, 01:07

Biden didn't actually say this. The White House issued a document: Statement from President Joe Biden on the Death of World Central Kitchen Workers in Gaza
HOME BRIEFING ROOM STATEMENTS AND RELEASES
I am outraged and heartbroken by the deaths of seven humanitarian workers from World Central Kitchen, including one American, in Gaza yesterday. . . .

Thumb chrisrushlau 06 April 2024, 04:27

The convoy belonged to a group led by José Andrés, the celebrity chef with many popular restaurants in Washington and with close ties to the Biden White House. . . . Around 200 aid workers have been killed since the war began last year, but the reaction to this incident was much larger since many in Washington — including in the Biden administration — are close to Andrés and have dined in his many restaurants around the capital. Many officials throughout the administration were already upset by the growing number of killed civilians and aid workers, but “this hits in a different way,” said a U.S. official, who was granted anonymity to detail an internal reaction. “Everyone loves José and World Central Kitchen and it just seems like a blatantly horrific and stupid mistake to do that.” (Politico)