BICOM

One man was reported to have died after Israeli soldiers opened fire on two Palestinians who ignored warnings and attempted to tamper with the border fence along the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.

The two men were spotted entering a restricted zone near the Israel-Gaza border at the northern end of the Gaza Strip and were seen tampering with the border fence. According to the IDF, both men appeared to be armed and both ignored warning shots fired by soldiers, refusing to retreat from the fence. Reuters quotes an Israeli military spokeswoman who said that “a hit was confirmed” after soldiers subsequently opened fire. According to AFP, Palestinian medical sources said that 36-year-old Houshabe Abou Houshabe had been shot dead. The Israeli army said that the second man was taken into custody for questioning.

Ynet reports that the Israeli army suspects the two men were attempting to plant explosives along the border fence, with the intention that they would be detonated targeting Israeli border patrols. However, the Israeli Walla news site says that based on the evidence of the interference with the border fence, army officials believe that the two Palestinian men were attempting to launch a terror attack on nearby Kibbutz Nir Am. The same report said that Israeli residents in the nearby area were instructed to stay indoors for a period of time while the IDF ensured that the security threat was over.