Israeli airstrike killed a USAID contractor in Gaza, his colleagues say
WASHINGTON — An Israeli airstrike killed a U.S. Agency for International Development contractor in Gaza last month, his colleagues said in a statement on Saturday. The U.S. development agency noted the deaths and urged greater protection for humanitarian workers during the fighting there.
Hani Jnena, 33, was killed on November 5, along with his wife, their 2-year-old and 4-year-old daughters, and her family, according to US-based humanitarian group Global Communities.
Jnena, an internet technology worker, had fled his Gaza City neighborhood with his family to escape airstrikes but was killed while sheltering with his in-laws, the group said. His employer was a local partner for USAID, the US agency said.
The Washington Post first reported the death.
In a final message to a colleague, Hani wrote: “My daughters are terrified and I am trying to keep them calm, but this bombing is terrifying,” Global Communities said.
It was a rare report of the killing of someone with ties to the US government in the more than two-month war between Israel and Hamas. Scores of workers from local and international aid agencies, including more than 100 UN workers, have been killed in Gaza as Israel bombed areas packed with civilians and battled Hamas fighters on the ground.
Health officials in Hamas-run Gaza say more than 17,000 people have been killed, two-thirds of them women and children. The Israeli offensive is a response to an Oct. 7 Hamas attack in Israel that killed about 1,200 people.
USAID staff have featured prominently in recent open letters from US government officials objecting to US policies in support of Israel's continued offensive, including President Joe Biden's decision not to join many other administrations in calling for a ceasefire.
In an email on Saturday, USAID spokesperson Jessica Jennings said: “The USAID community mourns the deaths of the innocent civilians and many humanitarian workers who have died in this conflict, including courageous individuals like Hani Jnena.”
“By providing assistance and advocating for greater safety for civilians and the humanitarians who serve them, we are doing our utmost to honor the dedication, fortitude and compassion of all humanitarians who have died,” Jennings said.