Australia's foreign minister is 'outraged' - and frankly, who can blame her - after Israel decided not to prosecute anyone over the death of aid worker Zomi Frankcom, who was killed in an IDF strike in Gaza back in April 2024. Frankcom, an Australian with World Central Kitchen (WCK), was among seven aid workers killed in the airstrike, which also claimed the lives of three British nationals, a Palestinian, a Pole, and a dual US-Canadian citizen.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong expressed her displeasure in a statement, saying the decision 'falls far short of the accountability we expect,' and announced she'd be calling in the Israeli ambassador. WCK, for its part, called the decision 'inconsistent with the full truth' and accused the military investigation of 'conflating different timelines and events' and 'shifting the blame for the IDF's illegal conduct.'

The IDF, in its statement, offered a familiar refrain: the presence of an armed guard with the convoy hadn't been flagged beforehand, and he was 'falsely identified as a Hamas fighter.' They also claimed the convoy deviated from the coordinated route. Despite acknowledging 'serious failures' in the process, they concluded that 'the decisions of the commanders did not raise reasonable suspicion of criminal misconduct.' Because, apparently, when you botch an airstrike that kills seven aid workers, it's just one of those things.

The IDF also announced it wouldn't pursue criminal investigations into the deaths of four Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) employees killed in separate attacks in November 2023 and February 2024. Talk about a clean slate.

Wong noted that Australia learned of the decision late Wednesday night, and that it was 'especially insulting' because it landed on World Humanitarian Day. She pointed out that the IDF itself admitted the strikes were the result of 'serious failures to follow IDF procedures, mistaken identification and errors in decision-making,' yet still no criminal charges. 'This decision falls far short of the accountability we expect,' she reiterated, like a broken record with a diplomatic passport.

She's calling in Israel's Ambassador to Australia, Hillel Newman, and directing Australia's Ambassador to Israel to convey their views directly. WCK is demanding an independent investigation, arguing that 'the IDF cannot credibly investigate its own conduct.' They stressed that the IDF knew their team was unarmed and posed no threat, had full visual clarity on the clearly marked vehicles during the extended airstrikes, and knew their movements in advance. The military investigation, they said, 'muddies the story' - because nothing says clarity like multiple airstrikes on clearly marked humanitarian vehicles.

Wong's comments mark one of Australia's strongest censures of Israel since the war began, reflecting broader international condemnation. A report by former defence force chief Mark Binskin in August 2024 found 'serious failures' in IDF procedures led to the killings. The IDF had previously called the attack a 'grave mistake' - a mistake, apparently, without consequences.

In a twist, the IDF did announce criminal investigations into other incidents: the killing of five-year-old Hind Rajab in 2024 (whose ambulance rescue attempt was also shelled, killing two paramedics) and the killing of 15 Palestinians in March 2025, whose bodies were found buried in shallow graves. So, some accountability for children and medics, but not for the WCK workers. Priorities, right?