Gazans nabbed after infiltrating into Israel armed with knives

Four Palestinians, some armed with knives, were detained by Israel Defense Force soldiers after infiltrating into southern Israel on Saturday, the military said.

On Saturday morning, an unarmed Palestinian, who crossed into Israel from the Gaza Strip through the southern section of the border fence, was detained and questioned by IDF soldiers.

Later Saturday, three suspects carrying a number of knives were detained by soldiers in the same area after infiltrating from the coastal enclave, according to the IDF.

The army said the suspects were questioned at the scene, but did not clarify if they were taken for further questioning or returned to the Strip.

While Israel has a high-tech series of fences and walls guarding its frontier with Gaza, both above and below ground, a number of gaps remain in the steel fencing surrounding the Strip. In times of low visibility, these gaps have been used by Palestinians in Gaza to illegally enter Israeli territory, often with hopes of fleeing the beleaguered enclave.

In June, a man who crossed the border, armed with an improvised bomb, a grenade and two knives, was arrested by soldiers.

While attacks on Israeli civilians by those infiltrating from Gaza are rare, in May, a Palestinian man, who crossed into Israel armed with several knives, attacked and lightly wounded a security guard some five kilometers from the border fence.

Though Palestinians regularly attempt to cross into Israel from Gaza, it is highly uncommon for them to make it so far into Israeli territory without being seen and detained by Israeli troops.

The attack in May came days after the 11-day conflict between Israel and Gaza terror groups ended.