Israeli strikes kill two Palestinians in Gaza

At least two Palestinians were killed and two more injured as Israeli jets strike the Gaza Strip on Saturday, a Gaza health ministry official said.

The air strikes came after an improvised explosive device blew up along the border with the Palestinian enclave, wounding four Israeli soldiers.

The explosion was one of the most serious incidents on the border of the Hamas-ruled enclave since the movement and Israel fought a war in 2014.

Israel's army said it attacked 18 targets belonging to Hamas  in two waves of air strikes following the blast.

"Eight targets were attacked in a military compound near Deir el Balah, which belongs to the Hamas terror organisation, including weapon-manufacturing and training infrastructures," it said in a statement early Sunday.

It earlier said fighter jets had targeted "six military targets in Gaza belonging to Hamas, including: a terror tunnel in the Zaytun area and military compounds near Deir el-Balah and Khan Yunis".

The army then reported a "launch was identified from the Gaza Strip at Israeli territory."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a security conference in Munich called the Gaza border incident "very serious" and pledged to "respond appropriately."

'Rogue group'

Spokesman Jonathan Conricus said a "rogue group" had claimed responsibility for the blast.

But he insisted that "from our point of view Hamas is responsible" and said the explosive had been planted during a protest arranged by the group on Friday.

Israel holds the Palestinian movement Hamas responsible for any fire coming from the blockaded coastal enclave.

Hamas and Israel have fought three wars since 2008, and the last conflict in 2014 was waged in part over tunnels from Gaza that were used to launch attacks.

Israeli aircraft hit Hamas targets in the southern Gaza Strip repeatedly in early February, after it said Palestinians there fired a rocket into the Jewish state.

Rockets are usually fired not by Hamas, but by fringe groups.

The Israeli army responds automatically to any strikes on its territory, generally targeting Hamas facilities.

Tensions between the Palestinians and Israelis have been high since US President Donald Trump recognised Jerusalem as the capital of the Jewish state in December.

Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu will visit the White House next month, a senior US administration official told AFP on Friday.

The March 5 visit comes after a war of words between close allies Israel and the US over settlements, and a scandal that has seen police recommend Netanyahu be indicted for graft.