Middle East on a knife edge as 'Egyptian soldier dies' in exchange of fire with Israelis
Israeli and Arab media reports an Egyptian soldier died in a rare exchange of fire near Rafah.
An Egyptian soldier has been killed in a firefight with Israeli soldiers, it has been reported.
The rare exchange of force between the militaries of both countries is understood to have happened at the Gaza border near Rafah on Monday with sources in the Israeli Defence Force claiming Egyptian soldiers fired at Israeli soldiers who returned fire.
The Jerusalem Post said no Israeli soldiers were injured in the incident and that commanders of the two forces were quickly in touch to arrange a ceasefire.
According to the paper, a dialogue has been opened between Egyptian and Israeli forces to lessen tensions following the battle.
Tensions are high between the two countries, as in June last year an Egyptian police officer shot dead three IDF soldiers. In October an Egyptian police officer killed two Israeli tourists and an Egyptian tour guide.
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The Mirror reports Israeli Channel 13 as saying "an unusual incident between the Israeli and Egyptian armies" took place at the Rafah crossing. The channel said the IDF was investigating.
Israel faced new condemnation on Monday for strikes on the southern Gaza city of Rafah that local health officials said killed at least 45 Palestinians, including displaced people living in tents that were engulfed by fire.
Israel has faced surging international criticism over its war with Hamas, with even some of its closest allies, particularly the United States, expressing outrage at civilian deaths.
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Israel asserts that it adheres to international law even as it faces scrutiny in the world’s top courts, one of which last week demanded that it halt its offensive in Rafah.
Hamas terrorists fired long-range rockets into Israeli territory for the first time in months on Sunday, targeting civilians in the city of Tel-Aviv.
The paramilitary wing still holds around 100 Israeli hostages and the remains of around 30 others after most of the rest were released during a cease-fire last year.
Hamas triggered the war with its October 7 terror attack into Israel, in which Palestinian militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and seized some 250 hostages.
The ensuing war between Israel and Hamas has killed nearly 36,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and fighters in its count. The Health Ministry said the bodies of 81 people killed by Israeli strikes had been brought to hospitals over the past 24 hours.
