Egypt's military said on Monday that a border guard was killed in a shooting in the Rafah border area with Gaza, where Israeli forces are deployed, adding that a probe had been launched.
"The Egyptian armed forces, through the competent authorities, are investigating a shooting incident in the Rafah border area which led to the martyrdom of a guard," a military statement said.
The Israeli military reported a "shooting incident" on the Egyptian border, and said it was discussing the incident with Egypt.
Since May 7 Israeli forces have been operating in Rafah, a city in the far south of the Gaza Strip bordering Egypt.
Protective measures
Al-Qahera News, which has links to Egyptian intelligence, quoted a defence official as saying an initial probe of the shooting incident indicated that Israeli troops and Palestinian fighters had exchanged fire, "which led to shooting in several directions."
"The Egyptian security personnel were taking protective measures and dealing with the source of the fire," the official added.
Since the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas broke out on October 7, Egypt has been keen both to remain in solidarity with the Palestinians and retain its ties with Israel.
In 1979, Egypt was the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with Egypt, but their relationship since then has often been labelled a "cold peace."
Domestic repercussions
Cairo fears domestic repercussions over the war, and tensions have soared since Israeli forces seized the Rafah border crossing, a key entry point for humanitarian aid.
The official quoted by Al-Qahera said "Egypt has warned of the repercussions of the Israeli military operations" along Gaza's border with Egypt, warning of "conditions that are difficult to control and likely to escalate."
➤Click here to follow our WhatsApp channel for more stories
