The Israel-Gaza Strip border. Photo: Mary Madigan via Wikimedia Commons.

Israeli tank fire killed a Hamas fighter at a military outpost on Monday while soldiers chased down and caught two other Gazan terrorists who tried to cross into Israel, the military said.

During their pursuit of the two Palestinians, who were armed with “knives, wire cutters and combustible material,” the Israeli soldiers were shot at from inside the Gaza Strip, the military said in a statement.

“In response, an IDF (Israel Defense Forces) tank targeted an adjacent military observation post,” it said.

Hamas, the Islamist group that controls Gaza, said one of its members was killed when the outpost was hit.

The two Palestinians who tried to breach the border were being held by Israel, the military said. None of the soldiers was injured.

Hostilities over the Israel-Gaza frontier have soared since Palestinians began mass-demonstrations on March 30, which Israel deems to be cover for attempts to breach the border fence.