Palestinian Arab terrorists operating in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip detonated a bomb next to a passing Israeli military bulldozer along the frontier Wednesday afternoon, an IDF spokesperson said.

The bomb was set off while the bulldozer was carrying out routine maintenance work on the border fence along the southern Israel-Gaza frontier.

Army tanks opened fire to cover the bulldozer’s retreat.

No injuries were reported among the IDF forces.

Following the explosion, all agricultural work in the vicinity was halted and the area cleared of workers.

“A short time ago, a report was received regarding the detonation of an explosive device near an IDF force in the security perimeter along the Gaza Strip border,” an IDF spokesperson said. “There were no injuries to our forces. IDF tanks opened fire on a terrorist position operated by Hamas in the southern Gaza Strip.”