The French Foreign Ministry has reported that a French diplomat passed away due to injuries sustained from an Israeli airstrike in Gaza.
The diplomat was sheltering at a colleague’s residence, an employee of the French consulate, in Rafah, a city in southern Gaza near the Egyptian border, along with two other associates and their families.
The ministry’s statement indicated that the house was hit by an Israeli airstrike on Wednesday, resulting in injuries to the diplomat and the deaths of approximately ten individuals.
The ministry strongly criticized the airstrike on a residential building that led to several civilian casualties. It also called on Israeli authorities to promptly and thoroughly investigate and clarify the details surrounding the airstrike.
French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna arrived in Israel, on Sunday, to press for an “immediate and durable” truce in the war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Colonna will meet her Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen in Tel Aviv, as Israel presses on with its military offensive after the October 7 attacks that have left much of Gaza in ruins and sent tensions spiraling across the region.
The truce should lead to a lasting cease-fire to release all hostages and deliver aid to Gaza, it said.
