UNITED NATIONS: The United Nations condoled and expressed apologies to India over the killing of a former Indian Army officer, who died in war-torn Rafah in Gaza when the vehicle he was travelling in was attacked by shots fired from what it believes was an Israeli tank.
Colonel Waibhav Anil Kale, 46, who retired prematurely from the Indian Army in 2022, joined the world body as a Security Coordination Officer in the UN Department of Safety and Security (DSS) two months ago.
He was killed, and another DSS staffer from Jordan was injured when their UN-marked vehicle was struck when they were travelling to the European Hospital in war-torn Rafah in Gaza on Monday morning.
Kale, who had commanded the 11 Jammu & Kashmir Rifles in Kashmir, is the “first international casualty” for the world body since the Israel-Hamas conflict started last year.
“We also express our apologies and our condolences to the Government and people of India,” Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said at the daily press briefing on Tuesday in response to a question by PTI.
“We appreciate the contribution that India has made,” he said.
Haq said the UN has established a fact-finding panel to look into the deadly attack.
“It’s very early in the investigation, and details of the incident are still being verified with the Israeli Defence Force (IDF),” Haq said.
The fact-finding mission is being set up by the Department of Safety and Security.
Haq said that a weapon appears to have impacted the back of the white UN vehicle that was carrying the two UN staff members, killing Kale and injuring the other DSS female staff member who is receiving medical attention and “we believe that she will make it through”.
“The deceased staff member has been identified. He is Waibhav Anil Kale of India, and we send our condolences to his family,” he said.
Haq confirmed that this was the “first international casualty” for the UN in Gaza and added that currently, the world body has 71 international staff in Gaza.