Biden outraged by killing of World Central Kitchen workers in Gaza
The president's statement — his first comments on the deaths of World Central Kitchen humanitarian workers — contained some of his strongest criticism of Israel.
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden said Tuesday he was "outraged and heartbroken" by the killing of seven World Central Kitchen humanitarian workers, delivering some of his strongest criticism of Israel since the start of its war with Hamas.
"This conflict has been one of the worst in recent memory in terms of how many aid workers have been killed," Biden said in a statement. "This is a major reason why distributing humanitarian aid in Gaza has been so difficult — because Israel has not done enough to protect aid workers trying to deliver desperately needed help to civilians.
President Joe Biden in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on March 26, 2024.Alex Wong / Getty Images file"Incidents like yesterday’s simply should not happen. Israel has also not done enough to protect civilians," he added.
On Monday, an Israeli airstrike killed seven humanitarian workers from the relief organization World Central Kitchen, including a dual U.S. citizen. More than 200 aid workers have been killed in the war since it began on Oct. 7, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Tuesday.
Biden added that he would "continue to press Israel to do more to facilitate" humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza.
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