GAZA STRIP: A US-based aid group said on Friday an Israeli air strike killed four people accompanying its convoy in Gaza the day before, while the Israeli military said it had struck armed assailants.

“An Israeli air strike yesterday killed four Palestinians in the lead vehicle of an Anera aid convoy carrying food and fuel to the Emirati Red Crescent Hospital,” American Near East Refugee Aid (Anera) said in a statement.

It identified the dead as “four community members with experience in previous missions and engagement in community security”, noting that they were not Anera staff.

They “stepped forward and requested to take command of the leading vehicle, citing concern that the route was unsafe and at risk of being looted”, the Anera statement said. ’’The Israeli air strike was carried out without any prior warning or communication.“

A statement from the Israeli military, which did not give a death toll, alleged the strike occurred after “a number of armed assailants seized control of the vehicle”. It also said “the presence of armed individuals was not coordinated” before the convoy departed.

“After ruling out potential harm to the trucks, as well as a clear identification of weapons, a strike was carried out targeting the armed individuals. The truck arrived at its planned destination,” the military said.

Anera said none of its staff were harmed in the strike “though one Anera employee, who was in the second vehicle, witnessed the incident at close range”.

Anera President and CEO Sean Carroll said information collected by the group indicated it was “a case of partners on the ground endeavouring to deliver aid successfully”. He added: “This should not come at the cost of people’s lives.”

The ongoing conflict in Gaza has led to a major humanitarian crisis in the besieged territory while putting aid workers at risk. The World Food Programme said on Wednesday it was pausing the movement of its staff in Gaza “until further notice” after one of its vehicles was struck by gunfire at an Israeli military checkpoint.

Published in Dawn, August 31st, 2024