Source : Perth Now news
Foreign Minister Penny Wong has phoned her Israeli counterpart to directly protest Israel’s decision not to pursue criminal charges for those who killed Australian aid worker Lalzawmi “Zomi” Frankcom in Gaza more than two years ago.
News of Israel’s decision broke on Thursday, with the Israeli military saying an internal investigation found “no reasonable suspicion of criminal misconduct” in the deadly air strike on the World Central Kitchen convoy in which Ms Frankcom was travelling.
The attack killed also six other aid workers.
The announcement came on World Humanitarian Day, drawing widespread condemnation.
After hauling in the country’s envoy on Thursday morning, Senator Wong called Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar overnight to make clear Australia’s position.
“Minister Wong spoke with Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Sa’ar last night,” a spokesperson said.
“The minister conveyed Australia’s view and expectations as she did with the Israeli ambassador.”
At reporting, Mr Sa’ar had not commented on the conversation.
Both Senator Wong and Anthony Albanese have branded the Israeli decision an “outrage”, with the Prime Minister saying it “falls far short of the accountability that we expect and consistently call for” despite an “admission by Israel that their strikes were the result of serious failures”.
“On behalf of Australia, since the tragic killings, the government has consistently made clear our expectation for transparency, and we’ve pressed for full accountability,” he said.
“We’ve made this clear through numerous representations to the Israeli government, including from myself and the Foreign Minister.
“I have personally made this clear in a phone conversation with Prime Minister Netanyahu and in person to Israeli President Isaac Herzog.”
During a press conference, Senator Wong said Australia would consult with Ms Frankcom’s family before announcing further steps.
The family responded to the news by saying they were “deeply disappointed”.
“This was not a single, instantaneous strike,” they said in a statement.
“Three clearly marked humanitarian vehicles travelling in a humanitarian fire control zone were struck successively as survivors attempted to move from one vehicle to another.”
Israeli ambassador Hillel Newman defended his country’s position, saying the military personnel behind the attack “genuinely thought” Hamas militants “had taken control of the convoy” and they were unable to make contact with the convoy.
He did “express deep sorrow (to) the family”, adding that “every loss of innocent life is a tragedy”.
“My message to the family is that Israel is full of sorrow and solidarity with the family, but it was not intentional … there was no intentional attack on the workers, on Zomi,” Mr Newman said.
