In a statement, the Islamist group Hamas said the attack aimed to “terrorise” workers of international humanitarian agencies and deter them from pursuing their missions.
Commenting on the reports, the Israeli military said it was conducting a thorough review at the highest levels to understand the circumstances of what it called a tragic incident.
“The IDF makes extensive efforts to enable the safe delivery of humanitarian aid, and has been working closely with WCK in their vital efforts to provide food and humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza,” the military statement said.
‘People are dying just to get a can of tuna’: hunger worsens in Gaza
‘People are dying just to get a can of tuna’: hunger worsens in Gaza
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a radio interview with state broadcaster ABC that the country’s foreign ministry was “urgently investigating” the reports.
An Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesperson said reports of the death of an Australian aid worker were very distressing.
“We have been clear on the need for civilian lives to be protected in this conflict. We have been very clear that we expect humanitarian workers in Gaza to have safe and unimpeded access to do their life-saving work,” the spokesperson said.
Video obtained by Reuters showed paramedics moving bodies into a hospital and displaying the passports of three of those killed.
The WCK delivers food relief and prepares meals for people in need. It said last month it had served more than 42 million meals in Gaza over 175 days.
Chef Jose Andres started the WCK in 2010 by sending cooks and food to Haiti after an earthquake. The organisation has since delivered food for communities hit by natural disasters, refugees at the US border, healthcare workers during the Covid-19 pandemic and people in conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.
Andres said on X he was heartbroken and grieving for the families and friends of those who died in the air strike.
“The Israeli government needs to stop this indiscriminate killing. It needs to stop restricting humanitarian aid, stop killing civilians and aid workers, and stop using food as a weapon. No more innocent lives lost. Peace starts with our shared humanity. It needs to start now,” he said.
Palestinian health officials said a separate Israeli air strike on a house killed six people in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians were sheltering.
Meanwhile, Israeli officials agreed on Monday to take US concerns about a planned offensive in Rafah into account, said a joint statement issued after a virtual meeting with US officials on alternative ways to root out Hamas militants in southern Gaza.
The 2-1/2 hour meeting led by top US and Israeli officials concluded with a plan for follow-up talks in person as early as next week, the statement said.
‘We’re going to go in’: Israel says US can’t stop Rafah ground assault
‘We’re going to go in’: Israel says US can’t stop Rafah ground assault
US President Joe Biden has urged Israel not to conduct a large-scale offensive in Rafah to avoid more civilian casualties in Gaza, where Palestinian health authorities say more than 32,000 people have been killed in Israel’s assault.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed not to be deterred from a Rafah offensive as he seeks to eliminate Hamas militants responsible for an October 7 attack on southern Israel in which 1,160 people were killed.
The joint statement said the two sides had a constructive engagement on Rafah and agreed they shared the objective of seeing Hamas defeated there.
“The US side expressed its concerns with various courses of action in Rafah. The Israeli side agreed to take these concerns into account and to have follow up discussions between experts,” the statement said.
A US official said the US side, led by national security adviser Jake Sullivan, his chief deputy Jon Finer and Middle East envoy Brett McGurk, laid out alternative proposals that they said would protect civilians in Rafah.
It will up to Israel to decide what to do, the official said.
An Israeli official in Washington said Israeli participants included strategic affairs minister Ron Dermer and national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi. They are the same Netanyahu confidants who had been due to attend a Washington meeting last week that the Israeli prime minister cancelled.
The Israelis briefed their US counterparts on plans for a ground offensive to destroy Hamas’ last battalions that they say can be carried out in a way that minimises civilian casualties, said a separate source familiar with the talks.
It was unclear whether the two sides narrowed their differences, the source added.
The US is trying to negotiate a deal for the release of sick, elderly and wounded hostages taken from Israel by Hamas in exchange for a six-week ceasefire. Biden is under election-year pressure at home and abroad to negotiate an immediate ceasefire.
The Biden administration is also weighing whether to go ahead with a major US$18 billion package of arms transfers to Israel that would involve dozens of F-15 aircraft and munitions, three sources familiar with the matter said on Monday.