TEL AVIV, October 29. /TASS/. The Israeli military has thwarted a Palestinian radicals’ attempt to infiltrate Israel from the Gaza Strip through a tunnel near the Erez Crossing, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Sunday.

"Overr the last few hours, the IDF continued to strike and kill terrorists in the Gaza Strip. IDF soldiers operating adjacent to the Erez Crossing identified a number of terrorists exiting the shaft of a tunnel in the Gaza Strip. Following the identification, the soldiers confronted the terrorists, killing and injuring them," it said, adding that before the current escalation the Erez Crossing was used by "thousands of Gazans" to enter Israel "for work or medical treatment."

"Hamas built tunnels near the Erez Crossing so that it would be able to attack the humanitarian crossing and harm everyone in the area, Israelis and Palestinians alike," the IDF stressed.

It also said that an Israeli aircraft delivered strikes on Hamas strongholds and killed several radicals.

Tensions flared up in the Middle East after Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip attacked Israeli territory. Hamas views its attack as a response to Israeli authorities’ steps against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount. Israel declared a total blockade of the Gaza Strip and launched bombardments of the enclave and some areas in Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also reported in the West Bank.