Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has vowed to push Israel for a full and transparent investigation into the death of Australian aid worker Zomi Frankcom, after the Israeli military concluded its two-year inquiry by finding no suspicion of criminal misconduct — and declining to apologise.
Frankcom was killed in April 2024 when an Israeli strike hit an aid convoy she was travelling with in the Gaza Strip, where she and her colleagues had been delivering food and essential supplies to civilians caught in the conflict. Her death drew widespread condemnation and renewed scrutiny of international reactions to the Gaza war.
Albanese Labels Israeli Report a 'Nothing to See Here' Exercise
Speaking on Thursday, the Prime Minister described Israel's findings as a "so-called" and "nothing to see here" report, saying it fell well short of what Australia expected and what Frankcom's family deserved.
"Australia deserves better," Albanese said. "There's a need for a far more transparent and clear explanation from the Israeli government."
While a previous finding had acknowledged failures in how the strike was carried out, the Israeli military's latest announcement confirmed it had found no grounds for criminal charges against any personnel involved. Israel has also declined to release audio recordings from the drone strikes that struck the convoy.
Albanese said he would work directly with Frankcom's family before making any formal announcement about next steps, including calls for an independent review of the attack.
"We will press the Israeli government. The direction, we have said today, we'll discuss with Ms Frankcom's family," he said. "They deserve to be consulted on these issues, and we'll do that, and then we'll make an announcement in the coming days."
Family Calls Finding a 'Miscarriage of Justice'
Frankcom's family did not hold back in their response to the Israeli military's conclusion, describing it as a miscarriage of justice and an insult to her legacy.
"Zomi and her colleagues deserve more than an internal, opaque process that ends with a short statement by the Israeli military absolving their soldiers of criminal wrongdoing," the family said in a statement.
Their words underscored growing frustration that, more than two years after her death, no individual has been held criminally responsible for the strike. You can read more about the national outrage that followed Israel's decision to close the criminal probe into Zomi Frankcom's death.
Foreign Affairs Minister Summons Israeli Ambassador
Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong condemned Israel's findings earlier on Thursday, saying the outcome fell short of the standard of accountability Australia expected. She summoned Israeli Ambassador Hillel Newman to Parliament House to explain the results of the investigation in person.
Following that meeting, Wong said she had directed Australia's ambassador to Israel to convey the government's concerns directly to Israeli authorities as Canberra considers its next steps.
Calls intensified throughout the day for Ambassador Newman to be expelled from Australia in response to Israel's refusal to apologise. Pro-Palestine advocates, including Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi, and the Jewish Council of Australia both demanded sanctions be imposed on Israel.
Jewish Council of Australia executive director Sarah Schwartz said Wong's condemnation needed to be backed by real action. "Penny Wong says this decision falls short of the accountability we expect. She's right. So why is the response to a complete failure of accountability just a stern word to the ambassador?" Schwartz said.
Senator Wong, for her part, maintained that Australia's diplomatic relationship with Israel remained important for advancing broader foreign policy interests — though she gave no indication that the government was prepared to let the matter rest. The diplomatic tension also follows earlier diplomatic fallout between the two countries.
