Days after seven World Central Kitchen humanitarian workers were killed by Israeli troops, chef José Andrés condemned Israel’s war in Gaza as a “war against humanity itself” as he called for an independent investigation into the attack.
“It’s been six months of targeting anything that seems moves,” Andrés told ABC’s Martha Raddatz in an interview that aired Sunday, the six-month anniversary since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel that ignited the war. “This doesn’t seem a war against terror. This doesn’t seem anymore a war about defending Israel. This really, at this point, seems a war against humanity itself.”
A visibly emotional Andrés told Raddatz he was still processing the brutal attack on the humanitarian convoy, which had coordinated its route with the Israel Defense Forces before the IDF struck it three times on Tuesday. He said the troupe of workers had followed every proper procedure before their attack, including using marked, armored cars, prompting even more confusion on why they were hit.
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“Who was going to tell me that these protocols will break in such a way?” he told Raddatz.
The strike killed all seven workers, including a dual U.S.-Canadian citizen, prompting an apology from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a vow to prevent another one. President Joe Biden condemned the attack and said Israel “has not done enough” to protect citizens and aid workers. The bombing has since led the U.S. to threaten conditions on its aid to Israel should it not do more to curtail its military offensive.
Andrés compared Israel’s war effort to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s bombardment of Ukrainian cities and said that the U.S. cannot continue sending Israel weapons if they’re used to target citizens and humanitarian workers.
“It is unforgivable,” Andrés said. “I will have to live with this the rest of my life. We all will have to live with this the rest of our lives. I have seen firsthand what has been happening in Ukraine, entire towns and cities being wiped out by Russia, by Putin. What Prime Minister Netanyahu is doing is exactly the same.”
