Israeli military dismisses two officers over strikes which killed aid workers

The Israeli military has dismissed two of its officers over the drone strikes which killed seven aid workers.

Mishandling of critical information and violations of the army’s rules of engagement have been cited as the reasons for the dismissal.

Three other senior officers were also reprimanded for their roles in the strikes in Gaza on Monday evening.

Three Britons were among the World Central Kitchen (WCK) workers who died in the strikes – John Chapman, 57, James “Jim” Henderson, 33, and James Kirby, 47.

Their killings prompted a rebuke from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who told his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu he was “appalled” at what happened, and that the situation in Gaza is “increasingly intolerable”.

WCK founder Jose Andres claimed the Israeli military knew of his aid workers’ movements and targeted them “systematically, car by car”.

After Israel’s announcement, the WCK said the Israeli investigation is an important step but added that there needs to be a systemic change to prevent “more apologies and more grieving families”.

In a statement the charity said: “The IDF has acknowledged its responsibility and its fatal errors in the deadly attack on our convoy in Gaza. It is also taking disciplinary action against those in command and committed to other reforms. These are important steps forward.

“However, 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.

“The IDF has acknowledged that our teams followed all proper communications procedures. The IDF’s own video fails to show any cause to fire on our personnel convoy, which carried no weapons and posed no threat.

“Without systemic change, there will be more military failures, more apologies and more grieving families.

“The root cause of the unjustified rocket fire on our convoy is the severe lack of food in Gaza. Israel needs to dramatically increase the volume of food and medicine travelling by land if it is serious about supporting humanitarian aid.”

The Israel Defence Forces has described the strike as a “grave mistake stemming from a serious failure”.

In its report, the IDF said it had identified a “gunman” on one of the aid organisation’s trucks, and assumed there were Hamas fighters in the vehicles.

The Israeli forces did not associate the vehicles with WCK and, as a result of “a misidentification”, carried out the strikes.

This action was “in serious violation of the commands and IDF Standard Operating Procedures”, the report found.

Asked if he agreed the attack in Gaza was part of a wider pattern of similar incidents, IDF spokesman Lt Col Peter Lerner told BBC Radio 4’s World At One: “I think what sets this tragic incident apart from most of the others that you are implying about is of course the magnitude, the extent, and of course the level of grave situation that is resulting, because these are people that were trying to do good.”

He said other investigations were ongoing, adding: “I think this incident, this very tragic incident, is a very important part of our process of how we conduct ourselves and how we are operating in order to improve in the very challenging and complex situation of the battleground in Gaza.”

Israel had earlier announced it would open more land-based aid routes into Gaza, after pressure to address the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territory from US President Joe Biden.

Alicia Kearns, the Conservative chairwoman of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, had said it was “devastating” that it had taken six months and the deaths of western aid workers for Israel to change course over the supply of international humanitarian aid.

Ms Kearns said she believed the Government had “no choice but to suspend arms sales” amid concerns about how Israel may be using British-made weapons.

She added: “It’s important the public understands this isn’t a political decision as some seem to want to present it as.

“Legal advice is advisory, so the Government can choose to reject it, but UK arms export licences require a recipient to comply with international humanitarian law and that’s why emergency handbrakes for example exist in a change of circumstances.”

She rejected claims the airstrikes were a mistake, adding: “This is something that is happening on a daily basis, in terms of the attacks on humanitarians, and we are not seeing this outcry about Palestinian volunteers.”

Killed alongside their British colleagues were the relief team’s leader, Lalzawmi “Zomi” Frankcom, 43, an Australian national, American-Canadian dual citizen Jacob Flickinger, 33, Polish national Damian Sobol, 35, and their driver, Palestinian Saifeddin Issam Ayad Abutaha, 25.