France gravely concerned over reported Israeli hit on Gaza tent camp

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PARIS (Reuters) – France said on Wednesday it was gravely concerned by reports that an Israeli missile had slammed into a tent encampment in southern Gaza where displaced civilians had gathered to watch a soccer match at a school.

Palestinian health officials said that at least 29 people – mostly women and children – were killed by the Israeli missile strike on the area near the city of Khan Younis on Tuesday.

“France expresses its grave concerns regarding reports that there were several Israeli airstrikes on schools sheltering displaced people in Gaza, including a United Nations Relief & Works Agency (UNRWA) school and a school linked to the Latin Patriarch in Jerusalem,” the French foreign ministry said.

“It is unacceptable that schools, which are meant to be sheltering civilians who have been forced out of their homes due to the fighting, should be targeted,” it added in a statement.

The Israeli military said it was reviewing reports that civilians were harmed. It said the incident occurred when it struck with “precise munition” a Hamas militant who had taken part in the Oct. 7 raid on Israel that triggered the Gaza war.