Gaza City  - Israeli helicopter gunships killed two Palestinian militants and wounded two others during an exchange of fire in the central Gaza Strip, health officials and witnesses said..

The bodies of two fighters were brought to central Gaza's al-Aqsa hospital, while the two wounded were also evacuated in moderate condition, Gaza emergency services chief Mo'aweya Hassanein said.

An Israeli military spokeswoman in Tel Aviv said the clash erupted after soldiers patrolling on Israel's side of the border spotted armed gunmen planting an explosive device on the other side, east of the al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza.

An Israeli army force then crossed some 200 metres into the strip to neutralize the bomb, sparking a gunbattle in which an Israeli soldier was also lightly injured. She said the Israel Air Force fired at the gunmen from the air during the exchange, hitting them. An anti-tank missile, several grenades and bullet-proof vests were found on the gunmen's bodies, she added.

A spokesman for the radical Islamic Jihad movement confirmed fighters attempted to attack Israeli army vehicles on the border. Abu Ahmad, hailed the attack but did not clearly claim his movement's responsibility.

Egypt has thus far failed to mediate a new ceasefire between Israel and militant factions in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

Israel launched a ferocious, 22-day offensive in Gaza in December, killing some 1,400 Palestinians, many of them civilians. The offensive was a bid to curb near-daily rocket and mortar attacks from the coastal salient at southern Israel. (dpa)