Jacob Flickinger, 33, has been identified as the Canadian-American citizen who was targeted and killed by the Israeli Defense Forces in Gaza Monday.
Flickinger, alongside six other aid workers with the humanitarian group World Central Kitchen, was blown to bits in an attack on their aid convoy.
The attack has sparked outrage accross the globe, whilst the U.S. State Department has already come out to defend Israel, with National Security official John Kirby claiming it has no evidence the strike was ‘intentional’.
Aside from Flickinger, the six other murdered aid workers included 3 British nationals, a Pole, an Australian and a Palestinian.
Below are more details about these seven heroes.
Who was Jacob Flickinger?
Jacob Flickinger was a 33-year-old dual citizen of the United States and Canada who was killed in the IDF airstrike on a World Central Kitchen aid truck in Gaza.
The horrifying strike Monday killed Flickinger and six others for the crime of delivering food to the starving citizens of Gaza.
Aside from Flickinger, the other victims were Saifeddin Issam Aydan Abutaha, 25, of Palestine; Lalzawami Farankcom, 43, of Australia; Damian Soból, 35, of Poland; John Chapman, 57, of the U.K.; James Henderson, 33, of the U.K.; and James Kirby, 47, U.K.
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In a statement, the World Food Kitchen released a statement on their deaths, writing: “These are the heroes of World Central Kitchen. These 7 beautiful souls were killed by the IDF in a strike as they were returning from a full day’s mission.
“Their smiles, laughter, and voices are forever embedded in our memories. And we have countless memories of them giving their best selves to the world. We are reeling from our loss. The world’s loss”, with the statement signed by WCK CEO Erin Gore.
“Another crime that israel with get away with, with the help of the US & the UK,” one reaction on X (formerly Twitter) read to the WCK’s post.
“Deeply saddened by the loss of these dedicated humanitarian workers. Their selfless service will always be remembered and honored,” another reply said.
In a statement, Canadians for Peace and Justice in the UK said: “World Central Kitchen identifies the slain Canadian aid worker as 33-year-old Jacob Flickinger. Our thoughts go his friends and family, may his memory be a blessing. Canada must ensure that his killers are held accountable,”
A post on Facebook expressed immense outrage.
“This is the most well documented Genocide in History! We are watching it in real time! It cannot be denied.
“The carnage continues, we do not need words, we need action. Israel needs to face consequences for breaking international law! And the countries that have been facilitating this Genocide are equally guilty.
“When we look back at history, we asked how could these atrocities happen. Why was it not prevented. Well it is happening now!!!! Palestinuans are being ethnically cleansed
“Stop Israeli Genocide against innocent Palestinian civilians!”
Israeli Prime Minster, Benjamin Netanyahu, said the strike was unfortunate but those things just ‘happen in war’.
“Unfortunately, in the last day, there was a tragic case of our forces unintentionally hitting innocent people in the Gaza Strip,” Net
“It happens in war, we check it to the end, we are in contact with the governments, and we will do everything so that this thing does not happen again,” he added.
The strike
The airstrike that killed Jacob Flickinger and six others occurred Monday, April 1st.
Israeli publication Haaretz reports that the IDF believed an armed man, believed to be a terrorist, had joined the humanitarian food convoy, leading to the strike.
The World Central Kitchen, ran by Jose Andres, released a statement on the attack.
“World Central Kitchen is devastated to confirm seven members of our team have been killed in an IDF strike in Gaza,” the statement began.
“The WCK team was traveling in a deconflicted zone in two armored cars branded with the WCK logo and a soft skin vehicle.
“Despite coordinating movements with the IDF, the convoy was hit as it was leaving the Deir al-Balah warehouse, where the team had unloaded more than 100 tons of humanitarian food aid brought to Gaza on the maritime route.
“This is not only an attack against WCK, this is an attack on humanitarian organizations showing up in the most dire of situations where food is being used as a weapon of war. This is unforgivable,” said World Central Kitchen CEO Erin Gore.
“I am heartbroken and appalled that we—World Central Kitchen and the world—lost beautiful lives today because of a targeted attack by the IDF. The love they had for feeding people, the determination they embodied to show that humanity rises above all, and the impact they made in countless lives will forever be remembered and cherished,” said Erin.
In reaction to the tragedy, the WCK announced it was pausing operations in Gaza.
Joe Biden responds
The United States President, Joseph R. Biden, released a statement addressing the strike that killed Jacob Flickinger, a dual U.S.-Canadian citizen.
Biden claimed to be outraged at the attack yet announced no new measures in addressing the devastating war, instead relying on Israel to conduct its own investigation into the carnage.
“I am outraged and heartbroken by the deaths of seven humanitarian workers from World Central Kitchen, including one American, in Gaza yesterday. They were providing food to hungry civilians in the middle of a war. They were brave and selfless. Their deaths are a tragedy,” the statement said.
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“Israel has pledged to conduct a thorough investigation into why the aid workers’ vehicles were hit by airstrikes. That investigation must be swift, it must bring accountability, and its findings must be made public,”
Meanwhile, National Security advisor John Kirby, in a back and forth with the media, defended the Israeli government over the attack, even though it had killed a U.S. citizen Jacob Flickinger.
“There’s no evidence that it was a deliberate strike, that they knew exactly what they were hitting, that they were hitting aid workers and did it on purpose,” Kirby said.
“We have not found any evidence that the Israelis have violated humanitarian law,”
World Central Kitchen
World Central Kitchen (WCK) is a not-for-profit non-governmental organization devoted to providing meals in the wake of natural disasters.
Founded in 2010 by Spanish American chef and restaurateur José Andrés, the organization prepared food in Haiti following its devastating earthquake.
Its method of operations is to be a first responder and then to collaborate and galvanize solutions with local chefs to solve the problem of hunger, immediately following a disaster.
The charity also prepared and provided food in the wake of the 2017 Hurricane Harvey, 2018 lower Puna eruption, 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, and the ongoing Gaza humanitarian crisis.
In 2023, a WCK volunteer in Kharkiv was killed by a Russian missile strike on his apartment, while in 2024, seven WCK volunteers were killed by an Israeli drone attack in the Gaza Strip.
The NGO has contributed to the provision of meals in the Bahamas, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, Nicaragua, Zambia, Peru, Uganda, Cambodia, Ukraine, the United States, Turkey, Syria, and Palestine.
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