AUSTRALIA’S foreign minister said today that she was “outraged” by the Israeli military’s decision not to launch a criminal investigation into the death of an aid worker killed in a Gaza air attack.

Zomi Frankcom was working with World Central Kitchen when she was killed alongside other colleagues during an Israeli attack in April 2024.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the decision “falls far short of the accountability we expect” and summoned the Israeli ambassador.

Ms Wong said there were still many “unanswered questions,” including why if the first strike on the convoy was “a catastrophic error,” two further strikes followed, just minutes apart.

She added the removal of two officers from their positions and the reprimanding of three after an initial probe was “insufficient accountability.” 

On Wednesday the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said the presence of an armed guard with the convoy had not been flagged with it before the convoy set off, and that he was falsely identified as a Hamas fighter. 

The IDF also claimed the convoy had deviated from the route that had been co-ordinated with the military.

Notwithstanding “serious failures” in the process that led to the killings, “the decisions of the commanders did not raise reasonable suspicion of criminal misconduct,” the IDF said.

In the same statement, the IDF also said it had also failed to find grounds for criminal investigation into the killing of four employees of Medecins Sans Frontieres, who were killed in two separate attacks in November 2023 and February 2024.

After meeting Ms Wong, Israeli ambassador Hillel Newman said an initial probe showed “there was no criminal intention” and therefore “no criminal responsibility.”

In a statement today Ms Frankcom’s family said they were “deeply disappointed” by the IDF’s decision and continued to call for “an independent investigation.” 

According to Ms Wong, drone audio from the attack had still not been handed over despite requests from the Australian government.

The Frankcom decision contrasts with the IDF’s announcement that it would carry out a criminal investigation into the killing by Israeli forces of five year old Palestinian girl Hind Rajab and six of her relatives in Gaza in 2024.

It also said it would similarly investigate the killing of 15 Palestinians in March, including medics and a UN worker, in March 2025, whose bodies were found buried in shallow graves a week later next to the crushed vehicles.