Souther Command Chief Tal Russo at scene of attack. Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Office.

An attack on Israeli soldiers Friday morning left an Israeli soldier dead, and one injured along the country’s border with Egypt.

IDF soldier Netanel Yahalomi, was struck in the head and killed instantly while overseeing the construction of a security fence along the Egypt-Israel border.  The unit that was shot at returned fire, killing one of the terrorists.  Then, a nearby Israeli unit joined the fight, killing two more of the assailants.  One of the 3 terrorists who was killed was wearing a suicide belt, which exploded during the firefight.

“An initial inquiry indicates that IDF soldiers came under fire while performing routine activity along the Israel-Egypt border, in the Har Harif area, as part of their effort to secure the construction of the border fence,” the IDF said in a statement to reporters. “This is an area in which the construction of the fence has not been completed. Additional IDF force patrolling nearby identified the three terrorists and opened fire, killing all three. ”

Earlier this week, multiple terrorists in the Gaza Strip who were in the final stages of planning an attack against Israel, were killed by an IAF airstrike.

Regarding the incident on Friday, a spokesman for the IDF said, “No one has been kidnapped, and there are no terrorists in Israeli territory.”