Three Israeli soldiers were shot and killed near the Israeli-Egyptian border on Saturday, the army said in a statement. “A soldier was killed in exchanges of fire with an assailant in Israeli territory,” the army said. Two other soldiers had been killed hours earlier while guarding the Israeli-Egyptian border, an army spokesman said. One of the two soldiers killed in the initial attack was a woman, Lia Ben Nun, 19, the army said. The Israeli army unit responsible for patrolling the Israeli-Egyptian border is a mixed unit.
For its part, Egypt deplored in a press release the loss of a policeman. “A member of the security forces chasing drug traffickers crossed a checkpoint, followed by an exchange of fire with the Israeli security forces which left three dead on the Israeli side and that of the member of the Egyptian security forces” , confirmed the spokesman of the Egyptian armed forces.
Excavations carried out in the area
“During a confrontation with an assailant in Israeli territory […], the soldiers responded with live fire and neutralized him,” the Israeli army said earlier in a statement. A military spokesman then clarified that the assailant had been shot. “The soldiers continue to search the area,” he also said, without giving further details.
Egypt was the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with Israel in 1979. However, the border between the two countries is the scene of recurring drug smuggling attempts, which have resulted in firefights in recent years. between smugglers and Israeli soldiers stationed along the border.