IDF Dismisses Two Officers over Unintentional Strike on Aid Workers, Admits ‘Serious Failure’

The Israeli military released the results of an investigation into its unintentional missile strikes on seven World Central Kitchen employees in Gaza, concluding that the incident “should not have occurred” and dismissing two officers who were involved in the botched operation.

“Those who approved the strike were convinced that they were targeting armed Hamas operatives and not WCK employees,” the Israel Defense Forces said Friday in a statement. “The strike on the aid vehicles is a grave mistake stemming from a serious failure due to a mistaken identification, errors in decision-making, and an attack contrary to the Standard Operating Procedures.”

The seven humanitarian aid workers were traveling in three vehicles clearly marked with the charity’s logo along a protected route in central Gaza until their convoy was struck by Israeli missiles Monday night. The IDF said its forces “mistakenly assumed” there were two Hamas terrorists inside the aid trucks and proceeded accordingly. Israeli airstrike operators “did not identify the vehicles in question as being associated with WCK,” the military said.