UPDATE - France condemns killing of Foreign Ministry worker in Israeli airstrike in Gaza

UPDATES WITH MORE FROM FRENCH FOREIGN MINISTRY STATEMENT, MINOR EDITS

By Nur Asena Erturk

ANKARA (AA) – The French Foreign Ministry has condemned the killing one of its employee in an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip.

The ministry worker succumbed to injuries from an Israeli airstrike in Rafah in southern Gaza, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement late Saturday.

The staff took shelter in the house of a coworker from the French consulate, and the residential building came under Israeli bombing on Wednesday evening, the ministry said, adding that more than 10 others were also killed.

"Our colleague has been working for France since 2002," the ministry said, offering condolences to the victim's family.

"France condemns the bombardment of a residency building that also caused several other civilian casualties," the statement read.

The ministry called on the Israeli authorities to shed "all light" on the circumstances of the airstrike as quickly as possible.

Israel has bombarded the Gaza Strip from the air and land, imposed a siege and mounted a ground offensive in retaliation for a cross-border attack by Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7.

At least 18,800 Palestinians, mostly children and women, have since been killed and 51,000 injured in Israeli attacks, according to Gaza’s health authorities.

The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stands at 1,200, while more than 130 hostages are still held by the Palestinian group in Gaza, according to official figures.