2024-04-06 06:28:55
The Australian government said on Saturday that it would appoint a special advisor to work with Israel, to ensure “full confidence” in the investigations into an air strike on the Gaza Strip that killed 7 aid workers, including an Australian.
“The government will appoint a special advisor, whom we have asked the Israelis to work with so that we can be informed of the suitability of the operation,” Foreign Minister Penny Wong said in a televised press conference in Adelaide.
She added, “We would like to have full confidence in transparency and accountability in any investigation, and we will continue to work to achieve this.”
Yesterday, Friday, the Israeli army dismissed two officers and issued a formal reprimand to senior commanders following an investigation into the killing of members of the World Central Kitchen organization – including Australian Zumi Frankum – concluded that there were serious errors and violations of procedures.
Wong called the dismissal of the two officers a “necessary first step,” but said the government told Israel in a letter sent overnight that “initial actions indicate that the Israeli government has not yet assessed the seriousness of the killing of 7 humanitarian workers.”
She added, “This matter cannot be ignored,” indicating that she expects all evidence to be preserved in the investigations.
A few days ago, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that he spoke with his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, and conveyed to him Australia’s anger and concern over Francome’s death.
Netanyahu described the killing of civilians as “a tragic event in which Israeli forces inadvertently harmed non-combatants in the Gaza Strip.”
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