Extract from ABC News
An Australian aid worker has recounted the moment her convoy, which had informed both parties in the Israel-Gaza conflict of its movements, was hit by bullets while delivering aid in Gaza.
Tess Ingram, a former journalist, had been working with UNICEF to deliver fuel, food and medicine to hospitals and health centres in Gaza on April 9.
Ms Ingram, in a video supplied by UNICEF, said she was going on a "coordinated mission", which meant both parties in the conflict knew where they were going and at what time, so "they could meet their obligations under international humanitarian law so that they can keep us both safe".
The aid workers were stopped at a checkpoint in Gaza, after there was a problem with the convoy truck that was carrying some of the aid supplies, when shots broke out.
She said the car she was in was then hit with bullets. She pointed to a number of what she said were bullet holes in the doors and bonnet of the car.
Ms Ingram told ABC the coordinated mission was unable to go ahead after the incident, and the convoy had to turn back.
"We wanted to proceed and we actually waited at that holding point for another two and a half hours maybe before deciding that we had waited too long and the mission was no longer feasible," Ms Ingram said.
"We had to turn back but we're going to try again … because the children in the north are dying of malnutrition and a famine can happen any moment now. So it's desperately needed."
The UNICEF workers were joined by UNRWA workers and security staff in the convoy, according to Ms Ingram.
The ABC has contacted the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) for comment. UNICEF also confirmed they had contacted Israeli authorities about the incident. It is still unclear who fired at the convoy.
In a statement, an Australian government spokesperson said it was "deeply concerned" by the reports, and was "urgently seeking more information".
"Civilians, journalists and aid workers must be protected. Australia has consistently called for this," the spokesperson said.
"Wartime does not remove the responsibility for observing international law. Aid workers must be protected."
Aid worker safety concerns in Gaza
This month, a series of Israeli air strikes killed seven international aid workers with World Central Kitchen (WCK), including Australian Zomi Frankcom, with the agency pausing its operations in response.
WCK founder José Andrés said Israel targeted the aid workers "systematically, car by car".
While the workers coordinated their movements with the IDF and travelled in clearly marked vehicles, the Israeli military blamed "misidentification" and described the attack as a "grave mistake".
The IDF said a gunman was seen in the vehicle, a claim that has not been substantiated.
Ms Ingram told the ABC the incident pointed to greater issues with efforts to deliver aid to those who need it.
"I just think it really underscores, about a week after the World Central Kitchen tragedy … that those issues with coordination haven't been resolved," Ms Ingram said.
She said aid organisations having to pause their work had impacted humanitarian efforts in the region.
"We need more aid to get in, but then we also need the conditions to deliver that aid to be improved. We need to know that we'll have telecoms that our missions, when they were told are safe, that they'll actually be safe. We need better access."
For months, aid workers and Palestinians have only been able to rely on two entry points, including the Rafah Crossing with Egypt and Kerem Shalom with Israel — both in the south of Gaza.
The Israeli military said on Wednesday that 11 trucks from the World Food Programme were coordinated through a crossing into Northern Gaza.
Before Hamas's October 7 attack, more than 60 per cent of Gaza's population was dependent on international aid.
Data from the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees showed an average of 161 aid trucks passed into Gaza every day last month, far below the target of 500 trucks.
Following the strike on the aid convoy, Israel pledged to open a crossing in the north and started allowing more aid across the border.
It said on Wednesday that 298 trucks carrying humanitarian aid were inspected and transferred to the Gaza strip.
Australian government continue inquiries into aid worker death
The Australian government has slowly ramped up criticism of Israel in recent months as violence has intensified in Gaza, peaking in the last week after an Israeli air strike killed an Australian.
It appointed former ADF chief Mark Binskin to scrutinise Israel's investigation of the air strikes that killed Zomi Frankcom and six other aid workers.
The IDF said it had dismissed two officers and reprimanded three others for their roles in drone strikes in Gaza that killed the seven aid workers.
The Australian government said it expected Air Chief Marshall Binskin to have "full access" and the cooperation of the Israeli government and the IDF throughout the inquiry into the strikes.
However, IDF Lieutenant Colonel Peter Lerner could not confirm that would occur: "I don't know. I think that that's the question that needs to be referred through the government, from government to government … so I think we need to check with the foreign ministry," he said.
When the ABC asked Israel's foreign ministry whether the country's government or military would cooperate with any Australian investigation, it said: "I think you should ask the IDF spokesperson on this issue".
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