Celebrity chef Jose Andres, in an emotional interview with Reuters on Wednesday, stated that his food aid workers in Gaza had been systematically targeted, with Israeli bombardment claiming the lives of seven of them. He described the attacks as occurring “car by car,” highlighting the severity of the situation.
Andres, speaking via video, asserted that the Israeli military, aware of his humanitarian workers’ activities, maintained constant communication with the World Central Kitchen (WCK) charity organization he founded. This coordination ensured efficient support delivery and collaboration between the Israeli military and the WCK.
“This was not just a bad luck situation where ‘oops’ we dropped the bomb in the wrong place,” Andres explained.
“This was over a 1.5, 1.8 kilometers, with a very defined humanitarian convoy that had signs in the top, in the roof, a very colorful logo that we are obviously very proud of,” he said. It’s “very clear who we are and what we do.”
According to Andres, the IDF knew where the convoy was. He demanded that the government of the United States and the nation of origin of each assistance worker who died look into the event.
“They were targeting us in a deconflicting zone, in an area controlled by IDF. They knowing that it was our teams moving on that road … with three cars,” he said.
Shortly after supervising the unloading of 100 tons of food transported to Gaza by sea, the aid workers’ convoy was struck by an explosion, resulting in their deaths. The Israeli military expressed “severe sorrow” over the incident, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described it as inadvertent.
According to Andres, the relief convoy may have been the target of more than three strikes. He disagreed with claims made by the US and Israel that the strike was not intentional.
“Initially, I would say categorically no,” Andres said when asked if he accepted that explanation.
“Even if we were not in coordination with the (Israel Defense Forces), no democratic country and no military can be targeting civilians and humanitarians,” he stated.
A representative for the Israeli military declined to comment on Andres’ statements, citing earlier statements made by Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, who described the incident as a serious error and stated that the attack “was not carried out with the intention of harming WCK aid workers.”
Andres claimed that although he was not able to return to Gaza at the time, he was personally expected to be there with his crew.
He stated that more needed to be done by the US to end the war. On Tuesday, Andres spoke with President Joe Biden.
“The U.S. must do more to tell Prime Minister Netanyahu this war needs to end now,” he stated. He questioned the actions taken by the Biden administration to arm Israel and provide help to Gaza.
“It’s very complicated to understand … America is going to be sending its Navy and its military to do humanitarian work, but at the same time weapons provided by America … are killing civilians,” he stated.
Questioning Netanyahu’s ability to fight to free Israeli hostages “when they may be dying under the rubble of the same weapons” Israel used on Palestinians was another thing the chef publicly expressed.
CAR BY CAR
Andres stated that his organization was considering resuming assistance delivery. Meanwhile, they continued to assess the security situation in Gaza.
Seven World Central Kitchen assistance workers were killed as it was leaving its Deir al-Balah warehouse, including Australian, British, and American residents.
Since October, the UN reports at least 196 humanitarian workers have died in Gaza. Hamas has repeatedly accused Israel of targeting locations where relief is distributed.
Andres described how his squad initially lost communication with its team in Gaza. They only realized what had happened when they saw pictures of the deceased.
Following the IDF’s attack on the first armored vehicle, the group managed to flee and relocate to a second vehicle. Subsequently, the second vehicle was targeted, compelling them to relocate once again to a third vehicle.
He added that the IDF was aware that the relief workers were in its territory and that they had made an effort to identify themselves.
Then there was an impact on the third automobile, “and we saw the consequences of that.”
In partnership with the Spanish nonprofit Open Arms, World Central Kitchen started transporting food donations from Cyprus to the famished in northern Gaza last month. According to Andres’ previous statement, the organization worked closely with the military of Israel, Arab countries, and others.
“Outraged and heartbroken” by the killings, Biden declared. The United States took a stand with Netanyahu’s claim that the strikes were not planned.
Since its founding in 2010 in the wake of the Haitian earthquake, Andres, 54, has attempted to circumvent bureaucracy globally in order to provide emergency relief to countries affected by natural disasters, such as Ukraine during the Russian invasion. According to Israeli authorities, 1,200 people were murdered in Hamas strikes in southern Israel on October 7, which sparked the conflict.
Since then, the majority of the 2.3 million people living there have been displaced and most of the densely inhabited land has been destroyed. The Gaza health ministry, under Hamas administration, reports that over 32,000 Palestinians have died.
Andres condemned the war as a whole.
“This it seems is a war against humanity itself. And you can never win that war. Because humanity eventually will always prevail,” he said.
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