Jerusalem, 3 June, 2023 (TPS) — Three Israeli soldiers were killed in a terror attack along the Egyptian border on Saturday morning. An Egyptian police officer crossed the border, killed two soldiers, and in a subsequent shootout, killed a third soldier.

The attack took place in the southern border area near Mount Harif and Mount Sagi, where a drug smuggling attempt had been foiled several hours earlier.

According to the Israel Defense Forces, two soldiers, identified as Sgt. Lia Ben Nun and Staff Sgt. Uri Iluz, were last heard from at 6:00 AM, reporting that they heard a shooting which they were going to investigate. Their bodies were found at 9:00 AM by an aerial drone.

Soldiers found the terrorist at noon and engaged him in a shootout. A third soldier, identified as Staff Sgt. Ohad Dahan, was killed and another soldier was injured. The Egyptian was also killed.

All three soldiers served in the Bardelas (Cheetah) Battalion, a mixed-gender battalion.

Israeli investigators believe the Egyptian crossed the border through an emergency gate used by Israeli soldiers in coordination with Egypt.

According to officials in Cairo, the police officer claimed he was crossing the border to chase the drug smugglers.

Defense Minister Yoav Galant and the Egyptian Defense Minister, Major General Muhammad Ahmed Zaki, spoke on Saturday evening. The two agreed to cooperate in investigating the attack.