WCC condemns killing of aid workers in Gaza

World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay condemned the killing of aid workers in Gaza, and extended condolences to the families and friends who are in shock and mourning upon hearing the news that an Israeli airstrike killed seven people working for World Central Kitchen.

The strike prompted multiple charities to suspend food deliveries to Palestinians on the brink of starvation.

The deaths of the aid workers have threatened to set back efforts to open a maritime corridor for aid from Cyprus to help ease the desperate conditions in Gaza. 

Famine is “projected and imminent” in the northern half of Gaza, a UN-backed report said last month, and according to Oxfam, since December, the number of people in the Palestinian territory facing “catastrophic levels” of hunger has nearly doubled. 

More than 200 aid workers have been killed in Gaza since the war between Israel and Hamas began, according to the UN. 

Humanitarian workers must never be targets in conflict, said Pillay. “It is tragic that people who give their time in serving others have to lose their own lives. Such attacks which take the lives of innocent people are absolutely unacceptable and cannot be justified at any level,” he said. “We invite all WCC member churches to join in raising their voices in prayer for justice, peace, and reconciliation in Gaza.” Pillay concluded “The UN Security Council approved on 25 March a long-awaited resolution on Gaza, demanding an immediate ceasefire, and the immediate release of all hostages. This resolution must be implemented and these senseless killings of innocent people must stop.”