Australia summoned Israel's ambassador Hillel Newman and expressed 'outrage' over the IDF's decision to close its investigation into the April 2024 strike that killed seven World Central Kitchen aid workers, including Australian Zomi Frankcom, according to The Zioneer. Foreign Minister Penny Wong said 'many unanswered questions' remain and argued that disciplinary reprimands against five officers did not amount to sufficient accountability.
The Zioneer reports that Australia summoned Israel's ambassador to Canberra, Hillel Newman, on Thursday for a meeting with Foreign Minister Penny Wong, who expressed 'outrage' over the IDF's decision to close its investigation into the April 2024 strike on a World Central Kitchen convoy in Gaza. The strike killed seven aid workers, including Australian Zomi Frankcom.
The IDF's decision was announced on Wednesday, August 19, when the military's special investigative mechanism—a dedicated body handling complaints against the army—published its findings. The mechanism determined that there was no reasonable suspicion of a criminal offense warranting prosecution in the incident. The IDF had previously imposed disciplinary measures against five officers involved in the strike.
Wong argued that the disciplinary reprimands did not amount to sufficient accountability. Newman expressed sorrow for Frankcom's family but defended the findings, stating that the no-criminal-liability conclusion followed two years of independent investigation. The exchange marks the second major diplomatic friction between Israel and Australia over the incident, following Wong's earlier criticism of the IDF's initial handling.
As The Zioneer previously reported, the IDF also closed its investigation into the deaths of other aid workers in Gaza while leaving open the probe into the killing of six-year-old Hind Rajab, and the Penny Wong topic dossier provides background on the evolving Australia-Israel relationship.
6 developments
- StrongAustralia, Canada, UK call to prosecute those behind 2024 Gaza aid convoy strike
- DevelopingIDF Military Advocate General issues rulings on multiple Gaza civilian death investigations
- DevelopingGadi Eisenkot attacks government policy in Lebanon, calls fire orders 'unreasonable'
- DevelopingAttorney General reportedly set to reject probe into leak of Iran strike timing
Source and signal
- Open-source intake