A British aid worker is among five volunteers killed by an Israeli airstrike in central Gaza, the Hamas-run health ministry has announced.
Volunteers from Poland, Australia and one Palestinian were among those killed in the Gaza city of Deir al-Balah where they were delivering food to displaced Palestinians.
The volunteers were understood to have been employees from the World Central Kitchen – a charity devoted to providing meals in the wake of natural disasters.
Those killed were reportedly in a vehicle together when the strike hit.
Footage has appeared online appearing to show the dead bodies of the deceased.
Israel, which rarely acknowledges such strikes, has not commented on the military action.
The World Central Kitchen has also not yet commented on the claims.
Footage showed the bodies of the five dead at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the central Gaza town of Deir al-Balah. Several of them wore protective gear with the charity’s logo.
Staff showed the passports of three of the dead – British, Australian and Polish. The nationality of the fourth aid worker was not immediately known.
The workers’ car was hit by an Israeli strike just after crossing from northern Gaza after helping deliver aid that had arrived hours earlier on a ship from Cyprus, Mahmoud Thabet, a paramedic from the Palestinian Red Crescent who was on the team that brought the bodies to the hospital, told The Associated Press.
The source of fire could not be independently confirmed and the Israeli military did not respond to requests for comment.
The aid ships that arrived on Monday carried some 400 tons of food and supplies in a shipment organised by the United Arab Emirates and the World Central Kitchen, the charity founded by celebrity chef Jose Andres.
Last month, a ship delivered 200 tons of aid in a pilot run. The Israeli military was involved in coordinating both deliveries.
The US has touted the sea route as a new way to deliver desperately needed aid to northern Gaza, where several hundred Palestinians face imminent famine, largely cut off from the rest of the territory by Israeli forces.
Israel has barred UNRWA, the main UN agency in Gaza, from making deliveries to the north, and other aid groups say sending truck convoys north has been too dangerous because of the military’s failure to ensure safe passage.
This is a developing news story, more to follow soon… Check back shortly for further updates.
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