The Latest | Israeli airstrike that killed aid workers in Gaza threatens much-needed food deliveries

You cannot win this war by starving an entire population. He noted that his charity provides meals to those in need in all over the world, including in Israel after the attack that triggered the war.Israel has acknowledged carrying out the strikes by mistake and says it has launched an independent investigation.But Andrs said the strikes, which killed six international aid workers and their Palestinian driver, were not just some unfortunate mistake in the fog of war. It was a direct attack on clearly marked vehicles whose movements were known by the Israeli military.

Israeli airstrikes on aid workers delivering food in Gaza killed at least seven people — including a US-Canada dual citizen and citizens of Australia, Poland and the United Kingdom. It's the latest Israeli military action to hit humanitarian efforts in the besieged Palestinian territory.

World Central Kitchen, the charity founded by celebrity chef José Andrés, immediately paused operations in the region, delivering a blow to the recently opened sea route for food aid. Ships carrying food sailed away from Gaza after arriving just a day earlier.

Israel says the strikes were an accident and that officials are investigating. The UN says at least 180 humanitarian workers have been killed in the war so far.

The US, which has provided key military and diplomatic support for Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza, had hoped the sea route would allow more food to enter the territory. In northern Gaza, the United Nations says much of the population is on the brink of starvation. South Africa has accused Israel of acts of genocide in its war in Gaza and filed a case at the United Nations' highest court — charges Israel strongly denies.

After nearly six months, Israel's war in Gaza has killed nearly 33,000 Palestinians, the territory's Health Ministry says. The ministry doesn't differentiate between civilians and combatants in its tally, but says women and children make up two-thirds of the dead. The war began on October 7, when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 people hostage.

Here's the latest: US SAYS IT CONTINUES TO SUPPORT ISRAEL'S RIGHT TO DEFEND ITSELF WASHINGTON -- White House national security spokesman John Kirby on Wednesday underscored that the Biden administration continues to support Israel's right to defend itself against Hamas following this week's strike that killed seven World Central Kitchen aid workers.

Still, Kirby said that the Israel must do more to prevent the killing and injury of innocent civilians and aid workers as it carries out its operations in Gaza.

"As a modern military and a democracy, they have obligations to the innocent people of Gaza and they have not always have met those obligations," Kirby said. "We are concerned about the methods too." Kirby, however, said the US has no plans to conduct its own investigation of the strikes.

"We expect the Israelis to conduct a thorough and comprehensive, complete and transparent investigation," Kirby said. "We look forward to finding out the results of that investigation. And we'll move on from there." CELEBRITY CHEF JOSE ANDRES CALLS ON ISRAEL TO OPEN LAND CROSSINGS JERUSALEM — Celebrity chef José Andrés has called on Israel to open land crossings for aid and stop killing civilians.

Andrés is the founder of World Central Kitchen, the international food charity whose seven workers were killed in a series of Israeli strikes late Monday.

In an op-ed published by Israel's mass-selling Yediot Ahronot on Wednesday, Andrés wrote that "the Israeli government needs to open land routes to food and medicine today. It needs to stop killing civilians and aid workers today." "After the worst terrorist attack in its history, it's time for the best of Israel to show up," he wrote, referring to Hamas' October 7 attack that ignited the war in Gaza. "You cannot save the hostages by bombing every building in Gaza. You cannot win this war by starving an entire population.'' He noted that his charity provides meals to those in need in all over the world, including in Israel after the attack that triggered the war.

Israel has acknowledged carrying out the strikes by mistake and says it has launched an independent investigation.

But Andrés said the strikes, which killed six international aid workers and their Palestinian driver, "were not just some unfortunate mistake in the fog of war." "It was a direct attack on clearly marked vehicles whose movements were known by the (Israeli military). It was also the direct result of his government's policy to squeeze humanitarian aid to desperate levels," Andrés wrote.

Israel has severely restricted access to northern Gaza, where experts say famine is imminent. Andrés' charity and other aid groups suspended their operations after the deadly strike, saying it had become too dangerous to operate in Gaza.

IRAN WARNS ISRAEL OVER THE SYRIA STRIKE TEHRAN, Iran — Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard has warned Israel over an airstrike that destroyed Iran's consulate in Damascus and killed 12 people, including two Iranian generals.

Gen. Ramazan Sharif, a spokesman for the guard, said Wednesday that "soon we will see deadlier blows to the Zionist regime and the Resistance Front will carry out its duties in this regard." He appeared to be referring to Iran and its allies across the region, including the Lebanese Hezbollah and armed groups in Syria, Iraq and Yemen. They have repeatedly traded fire with Israel and the US since the start of the war in Gaza, raising fears of a wider conflict.

Monday's airstrike on the Syrian capital was widely blamed on Israel, which has not said whether it was involved.

Sharif accused Israel of trying to avenge Hamas' October 7 attack that triggered the war in Gaza, saying it "will get nowhere, and the motivation of our soldiers will be multiplied." He also accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of using such strikes to divert public attention from "the racist nature of this regime.'' GERMANY IS CONCERNED ABOUT ISRAEL'S MOVE TO EXPEL AL-JAZEERA TV BERLIN – Germany is expressing concern about new legislation that clears the way for the closure of Al Jazeera's operations in Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to push ahead with the removal of what he called a "terror channel" from the country on Monday after parliament passed the law.

The foreign ministry in Germany, a staunch ally of Israel, said Wednesday that it views the legislation "with concern." Spokesperson Sebastian Fischer said a free and diverse media landscape is a central tenet of liberal democracy, "and Israel understands itself as a liberal democracy." Asked by an Al Jazeera reporter whether Germany agrees with Netanyahu's assessment of Qatari-based TV network, Fischer replied: "We have regularly given interviews on Al Jazeera, and wouldn't do that if it Al Jazeera were a terror channel from our point of view."

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)