American World Central Kitchen worker killed in Gaza by IDF airstrike is seen in heartbreaking pictures with his wife and baby boy – as GoFundMe is launched to bring back his body and create trust fund for his child

The family of the American-Canadian charity worker killed in an IDF airstrike in Gaza has shared a photo of him with his wife and son.

Jacob Flickinger, 33, was one of seven charity workers killed by an IDF strike as he and his colleagues at the World Central Kitchen worked to distribute aid to Palestinians.

They were in a three-car convoy Monday evening when hellfire missiles hit their vehicles.

“Jacob has been volunteering in Gaza since the beginning of March and helps distribute food to the Palestinians,” Flockinger’s family wrote on an email. GoFundMe page established to raise money for funeral arrangements and a trust fund for his son.

‘Previously, he dedicated his time to World Central Kitchen, where he also served on a mission in Mexico. He is survived by his partner Sandy and his one-year-old son.”

The incident has sparked international outrage and increased pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over his response to the October 7 terrorist attacks that killed around 1,200 Israelis and left more than 30,000 Gazans dead in reprisals.

In a statement, World Central Kitchen named Flickinger one of seven “beautiful souls” killed in the attack.

President Joe Biden also released a statement in the aftermath of the attack, saying: “I am outraged and heartbroken by the deaths of seven World Central Kitchen humanitarian workers, including one American, in Gaza yesterday.

“They provided food to hungry civilians in the middle of a war. They were brave and selfless. Their deaths are a tragedy.”

World Central Kitchen officials identified the seven victims of the attack and condemned Israel for targeting the aid group.

“These are the heroes of World Central Kitchen,” World Central Kitchen CEO Erin Gore said in a statement Tuesday.

“These seven beautiful souls were killed by the IDF during an attack while returning from a day-long mission.”

“Their smiles, laughter and voices are forever enshrined in our memories,” said Erin Gore, CEO.

‘We are reeling from our loss. The loss of the world,” he added.

“This is not just an attack on WCK, this is an attack on humanitarian organizations that show up in the most terrible situations where food is used as a weapon of war. This is inexcusable.

“I am heartbroken and shocked that we – World Central Kitchen and the world – lost beautiful lives today to a targeted attack by the IDF.

“The love they had for feeding people, the determination they embodied to show that humanity rises above all else, and the impact they made in countless lives will be forever remembered and cherished.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the IDF has “unintentionally (beat) innocent people in the Gaza Strip… it happens in war.”

The WCK said its team was traveling in a “deconflicted” area at the time. The roofs of the vehicles were marked with the WCK logo.

Secretary of State Anthony Blinken called for an urgent investigation.

“Humanitarian workers are heroes,” Blinken said. ‘They show the best of what humanity has to offer. I express my deepest condolences to those who lost their lives in the strike in Gaza.

“There must be a swift, thorough and impartial investigation into this incident.

Flickinger is a dual citizen of the US and Canada and worked as part of the nonprofit’s response team.

He was murdered along with workers from Australia, Poland and Great Britain.

The victims included three former British soldiers. Former Royal Marines James Henderson and John Chapman and an ex-Army soldier James Kirby were killed in the drone strike.

They were killed alongside Palestinian Saifeddin Issam Ayad Abutaha, 25, Lalzawmi Frankcom, 43, from Australia, and Damian Sobol, 35, from Poland.

The charity workers at the time of the strike were “leaving the Deir al-Balah warehouse, where the team had unloaded more than 100 tons of humanitarian food aid brought to Gaza via the maritime route.”

They had just crossed from the north after helping deliver aid that had arrived hours earlier on a ship from Cyprus, sources claim, and were killed on the Al Rashid Road, which runs parallel to the Mediterranean Sea.

Local Nael Eliyan, who lived in a tent meters away, sprinted to the wreckage shortly after the precision R9X Hellfire missile struck the vehicle.

“Their injuries were serious and they died quickly,” he said.

Harrowing footage showed a huge hole blown into the roof of a car, ripping the interior to shreds. Another vehicle was missing most of its rear end.

The IDF responded to the airstrike deaths, with spokesman Daniel Hagari saying: ‘Last night an incident took place in Gaza that resulted in the tragic deaths of World Central Kitchen employees as they fulfilled their essential mission of bringing food to people in emergency.

“As a professional military committed to international law, we strive to thoroughly and transparently investigate our operations. I just spoke with WCK’s founder, Chef Jose Anders, and expressed the Israeli Army’s deepest condolences to the families and the entire World Central Kitchen family.

“We also express our sincere sorrow to our allies who have done and continue to do so much to help those in need. We have reviewed the incident at the highest level to understand the circumstances of what happened and how it happened.

“We will open an investigation to further investigate this serious incident.”

Yesterday, ships carrying 240 tons of food aid reportedly returned from Gaza in the aftermath of the bombardment, adding to the humanitarian crisis in the narrow strip of land.

According to the UN, more than 180 aid workers died in the war.

“This is almost three times the death toll recorded in a single year in a single conflict,” said Jamie McGoldrick, UN humanitarian coordinator for the Palestinian territories.