Two French people were killed in the Hamas attack on Israel and fourteen, including a minor, have since gone missing, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced Monday evening in a press release describing their situation as “very worrying”.
“At this time, we deplore the death of two compatriots and have no news of fourteen others whose situation is considered very worrying,” said the ministry, specifying that “this number is still subject to change”.
“The information we have allows us to consider the kidnapping of some of them, including a minor child of twelve years old, as very likely,” he added.
“Avidan is indeed taken hostage by Hamas”
In a separate statement, a French MP said Monday that “at least eight French people are either missing, dead or taken hostage by Hamas.”
This deputy for French people abroad, Meyer Habib (right), whose constituency includes Israel, had indicated earlier that among the missing French people, Avidan T., 26 years old, a young Frenchman from Bordeaux (southwest) and living in Israel, would be held hostage by the Palestinian Islamist movement. “I have just spoken at length with his father, a doctor: he has just confirmed to me, as we feared, that Avidan (…) is indeed taken hostage by Hamas,” wrote the parliamentarian in a message published on the social network X (formerly Twitter).
On Sunday, Meyer Habib indicated that Avidan had “probably been kidnapped in southern Israel by Hamas” while he participated in a rave party near the border with the Gaza Strip, targeted by the attackers. Up to 250 people attending the music festival were killed.
Around 87,000 French nationals in Israel
“Nearly 62,000 French nationals are registered with the Consulate General in Tel Aviv and 25,000 registered with our Consulate General in Jerusalem,” said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In addition, “many French people passing through are currently there”.
The ministry also renews its call “to French people currently in Israel to respect the extreme vigilance instructions issued by our teams at the French embassy in Tel Aviv, the consulate general in Jerusalem and by the Israeli authorities “.
Requested by the AFP, the French anti-terrorist prosecution, competent in matters of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against French people abroad, indicated on Monday that it was “in connection with the Quai d’Orsay”.
The objective “is to obtain information on the victims and the circumstances of their death to decide whether or not to open one or more investigations and to define the qualification(s) that could be given to the facts,” he said. -He specifies.
Thousands of people gathered Monday in Paris and several regional towns to show their support for Israel, AFP journalists noted.