Israel Defense Forces Thwarts Potential Terrorist Attack On Egyptian Border

The terrorists hiding out in the Sinai desert, previously accosted by the Israel Defense Forces, or IDF, for crossing the Israeli border into Gaza in July, open fired at IDF forces on Friday, Haaretz reported, killing three terrorists.

Initial reports said that the three terrorists approached the soldiers in an area where a fence is still being constructed between the Sinai and the Negev deserts and opened fire. The terrorists were reportedly armed with explosive belts and ammunition. They also detonated an explosive device.

The three men were shot dead, and one Israeli soldier was killed and another wounded.

“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, the Algemeiner reported.

“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. ”

"The incident has been contained, and there are no terrorists in Israeli territory," IDF spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Avital Leibovich, told Haaretz, adding that the quantity of weapons found on the terrorists indicate they may have been planning a much larger attack.

"A very big terror attack was thwarted by the quick response of these soldiers," Leibovich said.