"This is a tragedy": Aussie aid worker killed in Gaza identified
The identity of an Australian humanitarian worker killed in a recent airstrike in Gaza has been confirmed as Melbourne-born Lalzawmi "Zomi" Frankcom.
Ms Frankcom, along with three other international aid workers and a Palestinian driver, was killed in Central Gaza while working with the World Central Kitchen (WCK) charity, with video footage posted to social media showing their bodies at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah.
The group were travelling through Northern Gaza into Central Gaza when their vehicle was targeted in an airstrike, Mahmoud Thabet, a Palestinian Red Crescent paramedic, told the Associated Press.
They had been distributing aid supplies to civilians in Northern Gaza and were returning to Central Gaza when the airstrike hit them.
Staff produced the passports of three British, Australian and Polish workers who perished, with the nationality of the fourth not immediately known – however, all five were clothed in protective gear with the charity's logo on it.
It is unclear why the vehicle was targeted, and the source of the strike has not been confirmed.
WCK confirmed the attack with a statement: "We are aware of reports that members of the World Central Kitchen team have been killed in an IDF attack while working to support our humanitarian food delivery efforts in Gaza."
"This is a tragedy. Humanitarian aid workers and civilians should NEVER be a target. EVER."
Frankcom, 44, has engaged in both national and international humanitarian work, and helped provide aid to communities affected by the Blacksummer2019 bushfires in Braidwood, NSW, according to 9News.
She successfully completed a course at Harvard University focusing on Humanitarian Response to Conflict and Disaster in 2021.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told the ABC he was concerned by the news.
"I'm very concerned about the loss of life that is occurring in Gaza," he said. "My Government has supported a sustainable ceasefire, we've called for the release of hostages, and there have been far too many innocent lives – Palestinian and Israeli – lost during the Gaza Hamas conflict."
Image: Supplied