A Palestinian teenager died yesterday after being hit by Israeli tank fire on the Gaza border, the territory's Hamas-run health ministry said. Abdel Fattah Abu Azoum, 17, was hit in the head earlier yesterday morning in Rafah in southern Gaza, the ministry said, as reported by Agence France-Presse (AFP). The Israeli army said he and a companion were seeking to breach the border.

"Troops identified two terrorists who were crawling towards the security fence in an attempt to cross it from the southern Gaza Strip into Israel," it said in a statement, adding that a tank fired upon them in response. The army said firebombs had been found at the scene. Palestinian witnesses confirmed the two were seeking to breach the border. Palestinian medics said the other escaped with minor injuries.

Since near-weekly mass protests began along the Israel-Gaza border, more than 135 Palestinians have been killed and over 3,800 wounded by Israeli army fire. The overwhelming majority of the dead and wounded have been unarmed, according to Gaza health officials. Israel has long been facing international criticism for its harsh response to mass Palestinian protests. Rights groups have branded open-fire orders as unlawful, saying they effectively permit soldiers to use potentially lethal force against unarmed protesters. Israel was sharply criticized by a U.N. human rights body for killing protesters in Gaza and treatment of the Palestinians, declaring it a "war crime" under the Statute of Rome. The high casualty toll triggered a diplomatic backlash against Israel and new charges of excessive use of force against unarmed protesters.