Egyptian border guards injured after Israeli army tank fired at watchtower

The IDF apologized for the incident — which took place in the area of Kerem Shalom, near the borders of southern Gaza and northeastern Egypt — and is investigating the matter.

Some Egyptian border guards suffered minor injuries, Egypt’s military said.

“During the ongoing clashes in the Gaza Strip Sunday, one of the Egyptian border watchtowers was accidentally hit by fragments of a shell from an Israeli tank, resulting in minor injuries to some border guards,” an Egyptian military spokesperson wrote on Facebook.

Egypt also announced the Israeli side “immediately” expressed its regret over the unintentional incident, and that the circumstances around the shelling are being investigated.

According to Egyptian media, witnesses say the Israeli strike would not disrupt the passage of aid to Gaza.

The incident occurred just hours after a second convoy of aid trucks entered the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing to head towards Gaza.

A first convoy of 20 trucks had entered the besieged enclave a day earlier, but aid officials are warning that supplies of food, water and fuel are still running low.

Israel had prevented aid from entering the crossing as it continued to bomb the Gaza Strip for more than two weeks, in response to an attack by Hamas against Israel on October 7.

UN officials say at least 100 trucks a day are required in Gaza to respond to the crisis.