Three Israeli soldiers killed by an Egyptian security near the border
The armed forces of both countries say they are jointly investigating the unusual incident.
Egypt says its officer crossed into Israel while chasing drug traffickers.
The Israeli military has said the shootings were assumed to be connected with a drug smuggling operation it had thwarted overnight.
According to the army, two Israeli soldiers - a man and a woman - posted in a remote spot along the border were shot dead early on Saturday morning.
Their bodies were discovered after a senior officer could not contact them by radio.
Hours later, after a search operation, the alleged attacker was encircled, and there was a shootout, the Israeli military says.
A third soldier was killed, along with the gunman, who it said was an Egyptian policeman. Another soldier was wounded in that exchange.
In a vaguely worded statement, the Egyptian military said that its security officer was pursuing drug smugglers and that a shooting led to Israeli deaths.
It also conveyed "sincere condolences" to the families of the victims.
The Israeli military says contraband worth about $400,000 was seized by its forces during the overnight operation against smugglers.
0 Comment