An explosion in the Gaza Strip killed six Hamas gunmen on Saturday, the group said. The exact circumstances of the blast were unclear. Hamas blamed the incident on Israel, which declined to comment.
A statement from the Islamist terrorist group that controls the coastal enclave called the incident a "deplorable Zionist crime" against its operatives.
"During a complicated security and intelligence operation, conducted by the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades, a deplorable crime took place against our mujahedeen in the area of Zawayda in central Gaza Strip," Hamas said in a statement Sunday.
Gaza media, however, reported that the explosion was the result of a "work accident," code for incidents in which terror operatives are killed when explosives they are handling accidentally detonate.
Some 10,000 Palestinians protested along the Israel-Gaza border for the sixth consecutive week on Friday. The IDF said riots broke out in five places along the security fence, where protesters torched tires, hurled firebombs at the troops and attempted to breach the border, while others sent firebombs attached to kites flying across the border into Israel.
Gaza's Health Ministry reported that more than 1,000 Palestinians were wounded on Friday, but, for the first time since the demonstrations began in late March, the ministry reported no fatalities.
Prior to the demonstrations, IDF Spokesman in Arabic Maj. Avichay Adraee warned Gazans against the practice of sending firebombs over the border attached to kites.
"We are not blind to the arson phenomenon and we are taking it very seriously," he tweeted. "Attack kites are not child's play; we don't see it that way. Hamas is using you [Gazans] and is pushing you into the circle of terrorism."
Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Friday that "we have found solutions to other things, we will find a solution to incendiary kites, as well."
Also on Friday, hundreds of rioters rushed the Palestinian side of the Kerem Shalom border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Israel, damaging fuel and gas pipes that serve Gaza, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit said.
"This is a callous act that harms the well-being of the people of Gaza as well as Israel's and other countries' humanitarian efforts " the IDF said.
"Violence of this nature, which directly impacts the welfare of Gaza's residents, is led by the Hamas terrorist organization, which places civilians in harm's way under false pretenses. Hundreds of trucks hauling goods and equipment have traveled through the Kerem Shalom crossing every week for years, and it houses fuel and gas [infrastructure] for civilian use in Gaza. By targeting it [the crossing], Hamas is acting against the interests of the residents of Gaza and is making their situation worse to serve its own purposes," the statement said.
On Saturday, the IDF fired at Palestinian suspects planting explosives on the security fence. In a separate incident, the troops fired warning shots at Palestinians trying to vandalize the border fence. No injuries were reported in either incident.
Two military surveillance drones documenting the riots crashed inside Gaza and were captured by the Palestinians, but the IDF said there was "no concern of any information leaking."
Also on Saturday, the military released several videos showing what they described as the "Pallywood phenomenon," namely how Palestinians fake injuries during the border riots for the benefit of the media outlets covering the demonstrations.
The videos show how "wounded" protesters, who were evacuated on stretchers, walk around and act normally as soon as they are away from the border and the cameras.
Another phenomenon that was documented was protesters who sent children to hurl rocks at Israeli soldiers near the security fence.
Meanwhile, the parents of Givati Brigade Lt. Hadar Goldin, who was killed in Gaza in 2014 and whose remains are being held by Hamas, staged a protest rally near the border on Friday, demanding the repatriation of Goldin's body.
Goldin's father, Simhca, criticized the government, arguing that last week's unveiling of a trove of Iranian intelligence, which Israeli agents seized in a daring mission, proved that Israel is capable of bringing his son's remains home if it chooses to.
"Those who delivered the Iranian nuclear archives from Tehran can bring back captive soldiers and civilians if they only choose to do so," he said. "If for four years the government has failed to bring the boys home, it has no right to send troops into battle. Soldiers are not garbage you can forget."
The body of Golani Brigade Staff Sgt. Oron Shaul is also being held by Hamas. Ethiopian Israeli Avera Mengistu and Bedouin Hisham al-Sayed, both suffering from mental disabilities, crossed into Gaza voluntarily in 2014 and 2015 and are believed to have been captured by the terrorist group.
