Former Stoneham resident among seven aid workers killed in Gaza
Ruby Pratka, Local Journalism Initiative reporter
editor@qctonline.com
A veteran of the Royal 22e Régiment who grew up in the Beauce region was among seven aid workers killed in Gaza when the convoy they were travelling in was hit by an Israeli airstrike on April 1.
Jacob Flickinger, 33, had been in Gaza since early March working with the U.S.-based aid organization World Central Kitchen (WCK), which sets up food distribution sites in disaster areas, conflict zones and refugee camps around the world. According to World Central Kitchen, Flickinger and his six colleagues – Zomi Frankcom, 43, from Australia; Saifeddin Issam Ayeb Abutaha, 25, from Palestine; Damian Sobol, 35, from Poland; and John Chapman, 57, Jim Henderson, 33, and James Kirby, 47, all from the U.K. – were leaving a warehouse in Deir el Balah, central Gaza, when their convoy – two armoured cars and a third vehicle – was fired upon.
“This was a military attack that involved multiple strikes and targeted three WCK vehicles. All three vehicles were carrying civilians; they were marked as WCK vehicles; and their movements were in full compliance with Israeli authorities, who were aware of their itinerary, route and humanitarian mission,” WCK CEO Erin Gore and executive co-chair Javier Garcia said in a statement.
A preliminary investigation by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) found that the airstrike was “a grave mistake.” According to CNN, citing IDF sources, IDF personnel “misidentified something slung over one of the passengers’ shoulders as a weapon, but forces now believe it was a bag.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, along with other world leaders, has called for an “open, transparent, independent and rapid investigation” into the airstrike.
Flickinger, a Canadian- American dual citizen who lived in Costa Rica, served in the Royal 22e Régiment for 11 years, including an eight- month tour in Afghanistan. After leaving the army, he picked up a variety of contracts, including working at a gym in Saint-Georges, training security personnel in Iraq and delivering meals to hurricane survivors in Mexico with WCK. He lived in Stoneham before moving full-time to Costa Rica during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Flickinger is survived by his parents, John Flickinger and Sylvie Labrecque; his partner, Sandy Leclerc; and the couple’s 18-month-old son, Jasper.
Family and friends described him as a “warrior” who followed the beat of his own drum. “He had a drive, a unique intensity, that was one of the things that defined him,” Labrecque told Radio-Canada.
“He was someone who was always ready to help others, and it’s thanks to him that I became a better person,” David Gilbert, a longtime friend, told the QCT. “He was a confident person, and a leader – the kind of person I would call if we were in a war. It’s hard to believe he’s gone – I thought he was invincible.
“The way he died – that was just so Jacob.”
Samuel Poulin, MNA for Beauce-Sud and a friend of the Labrecque family, said Flickinger would be honoured at the National Assembly in the coming weeks. A GoFundMe campaign to support Flickinger’s partner and son and pay for funeral expenses has raised more than $217,000 as of this writing.
A deadly conflict for humanitarians
Flickinger and his six colleagues are the latest additions to the grim list of humanitarian workers killed in Gaza – at least 200 aid workers, mostly Palestinians working for local organizations, have been killed since the conflict began in October.
François Audet is the director of the Canadian Research Institute on Humanitarian Crises and Aid at Université du Québec à Montréal and a veteran of many humanitarian missions. “States including Israel have signed the Geneva Conventions and different protocols to give humanitarians space to work,” he said. “It is the responsibility of governments to manage their soldiers and make sure [aid workers’] security isn’t in danger … and guarantee access to the populations [in need of assistance].” An airstrike such as the one that killed the WCK team is “a failure at all levels.
“We see Israel trying to block aid into Gaza, destroy any sup- port for the Palestinian people and attack supply chains,” Audet said. “The military strategy of the Israeli army seems deliberate, to attack humanitarian actors who are legitimately there.” WCK has since sus- pended operations in Gaza, where it provided more than 42 million hot meals across the territory and established 68 community kitchens over the past six months. According to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, up to 1.1 million people in Gaza could be facing famine by July.
“This goes so much further than my son,” Labrecque told reporters. “It’s a way to starve the refugees in Gaza even more.”