Israeli soldiers shot and killed three Palestinian men in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, said Palestinian medics who recovered the bodies near a border zone.
The army confirmed that infantry soldiers and IDF aircraft opened fire on three Palestinians who had approached the security fence separating Israel from the Hamas -ruledterritory, apparently with the intent of planting a bomb.
The Israeli Navy also took part in the shooting, the army said.
Residents said they had heard gunfire in the area.
There were no claims of responsibility from any armed Palestinian groups. Israel often clashes with terrorists in Gaza who fire rockets and mortars at the Jewish state.
The Gaza-Israel border has been relatively calm this past week, but on Monday, when Lt.-Gen. Benny Gantz took over as IDF chief of staff, a Qassam was fired towards the western Negev region. There were no reports of injury or damage.
A few hours after the rocket attack Israeli aircraft attacked two targets in Gaza. Medical officials in the Strip said eight people sustained mild injuries in the strike.
Elior Levy, Hanan Greenberg and Reuters contributed to the report