DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel struck houses and tents in central and southern Gaza on Thursday, crushing families inside and killing at least 17 Palestinians, including 10 children and three women, local health officials said, as international pressure for a ceasefire continued to grow.

Palestinian National Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is scheduled to speak at the United Nations General Assembly at 9:20 a.m. ET. Watch in the player above.

On the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, French President Emmanuel Macron told France 24 that his country had recognized a Palestinian state on the conviction it “is the only way to isolate Hamas,” which has proved itself able to regenerate even after many of its leaders have been killed.

“Total war in Gaza is

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