By Merve Aydogan
HAMILTON, Canada (AA) - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed dismay on Tuesday about Israeli airstrikes that resulted in the deaths of seven members of US-based charity World Central Kitchen (WCK) in the Gaza Strip.
"The devastating Israeli airstrikes that killed WCKitchen personnel yesterday bring the number of aid workers killed in this conflict to 196 – including more than 175 members of our own UN staff," Guterres wrote on X.
Guterres described the loss of lives as "unconscionable," emphasizing the gravity of the situation.
The WCK earlier confirmed that seven of its humanitarian aid workers were killed in Monday's Israeli strike in Gaza.
Despite coordinating movements with the Israeli army, the charity said the convoy was hit as it was leaving the group's warehouse in the southern city of Deir al-Balah, where the team had unloaded more than 100 tons of humanitarian food aid brought to Gaza on a maritime route.
The charity workers killed were nationals of Australia, Poland, the UK, Palestine as well as a US-Canada dual citizen.
In addition to killing 33,000 victims since Oct. 7, the Israel offensive and siege of the Strip has been blamed for near-famine conditions among more than 2 million Palestinians, and for attacks killing aid workers and civilians seeking humanitarian aid.