Three Hamas fighters were killed early Monday in an exchange of fire with Israeli troops at Beit Lahya in the north of the Gaza Strip. A Hamas official confirmed three members of the military wing of Hamas, Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, were killed in an exchange of fire with Israeli troops near a key border crossing with Israel.
An Israeli army spokeswoman alleged troops fired at a group of fighters who had approached the frontier in a bid to launch mortar shells into Israel.
In another incident, Israeli soldiers shot and killed a fourth Hamas fighter in the Shajiya area of the Strip.
Meanwhile, four Israeli troops were lightly injured on Sunday when a mortar shell fired from the Gaza Strip struck an infirmary on an Israeli base in the western Negev, Haaretz reported. The troops were hurt by pieces of shrapnel from the shell and evacuated to a nearby hospital for treatment.
