JERUSALEM, May 6 (Xinhua) -- Israel's army said troops shot dead two Palestinians while they were crossing the fence from the besieged Gaza Strip to Israel on Sunday afternoon.

The pair, together with a third person who was with them, tried to sabotage the fence between Gaza and Israel, a military spokesperson said in a statement.

"Israel Defense Forces troops fired towards three suspects who attempted to infiltrate into Israel from the southern Gaza Strip and to damage infrastructure in the area of the security fence," the statement read. "Two suspects were killed."

Earlier on Sunday, Gaza officials said that an Israeli drone bombed a post of the Islamic Hamas movement's military wing Al-Qassam brigades in northern Gaza. No injuries were reported.

The incidents came amidst escalating tensions along the fence over the past weeks, with Palestinians holding weekly marches, known as the "Great March of Return."

Since the beginning of the protests on March 30, 45 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces.