Poland summons Israeli ambassador after military closes probe into Damian Soból death

Diplomatic protest in Warsaw

The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Israeli ambassador to Warsaw on 20 August 2026 after Israeli military authorities dismissed all criminal proceedings regarding the fatal 2024 airstrike on a World Central Kitchen convoy in Gaza. Polish officials registered deep disappointment over the decision, which was formally communicated by Israeli prosecutors on 19 August 2026. The ministry, headed by Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, issued a formal diplomatic protest evaluating Israel's investigation as inadequate. Poland demanded that Israeli authorities transmit all evidentiary records requested by Polish prosecutors to ensure a complete judicial accounting of the incident. Polish diplomats also insisted on financial redress for the surviving relatives of the deceased.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs takes the position that the circumstances in which the 2024 tragedy occurred should be explained to the end and does not accept the perpetrators avoiding legal and moral responsibility. The families deserve adequate compensation.

Israeli military investigation findings

The Israeli military prosecution announced on 19 August 2026 that its operational review revealed serious procedural errors but no criminal liability among the officers involved. Israeli armed forces reported that military personnel mistakenly identified an armed escort in the convoy as a member of Hamas before launching the airstrikes. Field commanders subsequently operated under the belief that armed militants had taken control of the aid vehicles. Despite identifying procedural failures in how targets were verified, the military concluded that the tactical decisions made by commanders did not meet the standard for criminal prosecution. The dismissal follows earlier resistance from Israeli leadership, including Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, who in 2025 rejected compensation payouts to the families of the slain aid workers.

Polish legal proceedings in Przemyśl

Polish judicial authorities are pursuing their own criminal proceedings regardless of the Israeli military decision. The District Prosecutor's Office in Przemyśl opened an investigation on 2 April 2024, classifying the incident as the murder of Damian Soból caused by the Israeli military through the use of explosives. In April 2026, prosecutors in Przemyśl extended the procedural deadline for the probe to 2 October 2026. Polish investigators stated that concluding the case depends on pending international legal assistance requests filed with judicial authorities in Israel and the United States. The Polish foreign ministry explicitly conditioned bilateral cooperation on Israel fulfilling these outstanding evidentiary requests.

The 2024 World Central Kitchen convoy strike

The strike occurred on 1 April 2024 in the coastal area of Deir al-Balah in central Gaza. Seven humanitarian workers lost their lives when Israeli air forces carried out successive strikes against three vehicles transporting food aid. The team was delivering provisions that had arrived in Gaza by sea from Cyprus only hours before the attack. Each vehicle displayed the World Central Kitchen logo, with large emblems visible on the vehicle roofs. The victims included Polish citizen Damian Soból, British citizens, an Australian national, a dual citizen of the United States and Canada, and a Palestinian driver. World Central Kitchen halted all humanitarian aid operations across the Gaza Strip immediately after the incident.