2023 Egypt–Israel border shooting incident

2023 Egypt–Israel border shooting incident
Nitzana Border Crossing (on the Egyptian side)
LocationNitzana Border Crossing, Egypt and Israel
DateJune 2, 2023; 18 months ago (2023-06-02)
Deaths4 (including the perpetrator)
Injured2
PerpetratorCSF conscript

On 2 June 2023, a trooper of the Central Security Forces crossed over the Egypt–Israel border into Israeli territory, shooting three Israeli soldiers dead and injuring two others before he was killed in a shootout with the Israel Defense Forces.[1][2]

Incident

The policeman shot and killed two members of the Israel Defense Forces manning a guard post. An Israeli manhunt for the shooter was launched and a few hours later he killed an Israeli soldier and injured two others in a shootout. During the exchange of gunfire the policeman was shot and killed.[3][4] The Guardian reported the incident had taken place around the Nitzana Border Crossing.[4]

Aftermath

Egyptian authorities released what the BBC called a "vaguely-worded statement" asserting the police officer was taking part in an anti-smuggling chase when he crossed the border.[5][6][7] A drug smuggling attempt had taken place hours before the shootings; Israeli officials said they had confiscated 1.5 million shekels worth of goods overnight.[8][9] Egypt expressed condolences for the families of the victims and said it would open an investigation.[5] Lieutenant General Mohamed Ahmed Zaki, the Egyptian Minister of Defense, talked over the phone to the Israeli Minister of Defense, Yoav Gallant, to discuss the circumstances of the accident and offer condolences to the victims of the accident from both sides, in addition to joint coordination to take the necessary measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in the future.[10][11]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Three Israeli soldiers, Egyptian security officer killed in border gunfire incident". Reuters. 3 June 2023. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023.
  2. ^ "Egypt, Israel defence ministers discuss border incident; coordinate measures for prevention". Ahram Online. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  3. ^ Fabian, Emanuel. "Egyptian policeman kills 3 IDF soldiers in border shootings; is shot dead". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
  4. ^ a b "Three Israeli soldiers killed along Egyptian border". The Guardian. 3 June 2023. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
  5. ^ a b Knell, Yolande (3 June 2023). "Three Israeli soldiers killed near Egypt border". BBC News. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
  6. ^ "3 Israeli soldiers were killed along the Egyptian border, military says". NPR. 3 June 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
  7. ^ Hendrix, Steve (3 June 2023). "Three Israeli soldiers killed by Egyptian police officer near border". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
  8. ^ "Israel demands answers over attack on Egyptian border". Israel National News. 3 June 2023. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
  9. ^ Goldman, Paul; Jabari, Lawahez; Sackur, Leila (3 June 2023). "Three Israeli soldiers and one Egyptian killed in rare shootout on border". NBC News. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
  10. ^ "Egyptian, Israeli defense ministers discuss circumstances of border incident". EgyptToday. 3 June 2023. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
  11. ^ "Egypt, Israel defence ministers discuss border shootout". The Siasat Daily. 4 June 2023. Retrieved 7 June 2023.