Israeli soldier killed by 'friendly fire'

An Israeli soldier has been killed close to the increasingly volatile Gaza border after a shell fired by members of his battalion detonated prematurely.

Four more military personnel were wounded in the "friendly fire" incident which came during a clash with Palestinian militants in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.

According to an army spokesman, a shell fired by a mortar team exploded accidentally during an exchange of fire with Palestinian fighters who had been spotted trying to plant explosives along the border fence separating Gaza from Israel.

Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk