Israeli Commander Says He'd Do It Again: The Strike That Killed Seven Aid Workers

A former Israeli military commander has said he would do "exactly the same thing" again and that the aid workers killed in a 2024 drone strike in Gaza were "not innocent." The remarks by Nochi Mendel, a former reserve colonel in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), drew swift condemnation from Australia's Foreign Minister Penny Wong, who called the statements "utterly disgraceful" (The Guardian, 2026-09-06).

On the night of 1 April 2024, Mendel ordered drone strikes on three clearly marked vehicles belonging to the charity World Central Kitchen (WCK). The cars were travelling along Gaza's coast road when they were hit one after another, each strike about two minutes apart. Survivors who ran to undamaged cars were struck again. Seven aid workers were killed: three British nationals, an Australian named Zomi Frankcom, who was 43, a Palestinian, a Pole, and a dual US-Canadian citizen (The Guardian, 2026-09-05).

In interviews with the ABC and the Guardian, Mendel said he did not regret the attacks and was following IDF rules. A Guardian investigation found that the seven aid workers had been marked as targets under an Israeli military practice that treats being near or associated with suspected militants as enough to mark someone for attack. Mendel called this policy "haflala," which means incrimination, and said it gives commanders wide discretion to label someone a terrorist (The Guardian, 2026-09-05).

Mendel said the WCK workers had "mixed together" with suspected Hamas militants. He defined that as being "near them, talking, playing, hanging out and so on." Asked whether the presence of armed men made the entire convoy a target, he said, "Certainly." He also said his unit had been praised by the army for strikes on what were seen as Hamas attempts to seize control of aid deliveries. The only difference in the WCK incident, he said, was that foreign nationals were killed, which he called "not a substantive difference" (The Guardian, 2026-09-05).

Israeli officers familiar with the incident said the strikes were ordered to stop Hamas from controlling aid deliveries, not because Israeli lives were in immediate danger. The convoy was nowhere near Israeli troops when it was destroyed. An IDF statement said the airstrikes resulted from an "erroneous assessment that Hamas military operatives were present in the vehicles" rather than from an immediate threat (The Guardian, 2026-09-05).

An IDF investigation found the attack was a grave mistake and identified errors by officers including Mendel, who was removed from his position. But Israel's advocate general declined to press charges, saying there was "no reasonable suspicion of criminal misconduct." Israel's top military prosecutor announced he would not pursue criminal proceedings for the strike (The Guardian, 2026-09-05).

Australia's government said Israel's response "falls far short" (The Guardian, 2026-08-20). Foreign Minister Wong said Australia will continue to press Israel for justice and will consult with Frankcom's family (Penny Wong transcript, 2026-08-20). Australia summoned the Israeli ambassador over the decision not to open a criminal investigation, calling that decision "insulting" (BBC, 2026-08-20).

WCK's humanitarian chief condemned Mendel's statements as an "outrageous smear." WCK founder José Andrés said Mendel had smeared Frankcom and her colleagues, and defended WCK as humanitarians who believe food is a universal human right (The Guardian, 2026-09-06).

The Greens' defence spokesperson David Shoebridge called Mendel's statements "reprehensible" and said they reflect the rhetoric and policy of the Israeli government, where collective punishment of aid workers, doctors, and innocent civilians is occurring daily. Shoebridge accused the Albanese government of weakness over its failure to halt military exports and impose new sanctions. He called for penalties against members of Benjamin Netanyahu's government and for the sale of parts for the F-35 fighter jet to be immediately halted (The Guardian, 2026-09-06).

The broader context here is what the "haflala" policy reveals. Mendel's statements bring into the open a system that treats being near suspected militants as enough reason to kill civilians. More than 70,000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military in three years of the Gaza war, and the army's own data suggests more than three-quarters of the dead were civilians (The Guardian, 2026-09-05). Mendel's view that the WCK deaths differ from other strikes only because foreigners were involved effectively confirms what the Guardian investigation found: the same rules have produced the same outcome many times, and the system is working as it was designed to.

For Canberra, the gap between words and action is growing. Wong has summoned the ambassador, said the process is insufficient, and pledged continued pressure. But Australia has not suspended military exports, imposed sanctions on Israeli officials, or changed its defence procurement relationship. Shoebridge's demand to halt F-35 parts sales targets exactly that connection, and the government's refusal to move toward it leaves Australia open to the charge that it treats the killing of an Australian citizen as something that warrants statements but not consequences.