US ‘outraged’ by every civilian life lost in Gaza
WASHINGTON
The US on Wednesday said it is “outraged” for every civilian life lost in the Gaza Strip and wants to see Israel do a better job in minimizing the death toll.
“Far too many civilians have been killed, too many aid workers have died in this conflict, too many journalists have died in this conflict,” said State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.
The comment came in response to a question by Anadolu about whether the Biden administration is outraged at the killing of 196 aid workers, more than 100 journalists, and over 33,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, as the US expressed outrage for the killing of seven aid workers from the World Central Kitchen (WCK) in Gaza.
US President Joe Biden released a statement Tuesday that said he is “outraged” and “heartbroken” by an Israeli airstrike that killed the seven WCK aid workers and highlighted that Israel “has not done enough to protect aid workers.”
The US has repeatedly urged Israel to take steps to minimize harm to civilians in Gaza, although it is not clear what those steps are.
Anadolu asked Miller if refusing to take those steps indicates that Israel is deliberately attacking civilians and aid workers, Miller said: “I don’t think you can even necessarily make that conclusion because sometimes there are bureaucratic obstacles that are presented.”
A total of 196 aid workers, including more than 175 UN staff members, have been killed since the start of the Israeli onslaught in Gaza on Oct. 7, according to the UN.
The WCK confirmed that seven of its humanitarian aid workers were killed in Monday’s “unforgivable” Israeli strikes.
Despite coordinating its movements with the Israeli military, the charity said the convoy was hit as it was leaving a warehouse in the southern city of Deir al-Balah after the team unloaded more than 100 tons of humanitarian food aid brought to Gaza on a maritime route.
Pictures from the scene showed at least one vehicle with clear markings labeling it as part of World Central Kitchen.
Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by Hamas which killed less than 1,200 people.
Nearly 33,000 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza and over 75,000 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.
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