A Palestinian protestor sustained critical injuries Sunday when he approached the security fence separating Gaza from Israel .
The army said Palestinians approached the fence in the Khan Younis area "in order to provoke" and refused to back away even after soldiers fired warning shots in the air.
Left with no other choice, the soldiers opened fire at the Palestinians, aiming for the lower body, the IDF said. One of the Palestinians was critically wounded in the incident.
Meanwhile, the efforts to smuggle arms into the Hamas -ruledterritory are continuing. The Palestinian Ma'an news agency reported that Egyptian security forces uncovered an explosives cache in the Sinai Peninsula.
The explosives were apparently meant to be smuggled into Gaza through underground tunnels.
Egyptian authorities said apart from a half-ton of explosives, security forces also found anti-aircraft missiles.