A Palestinian was killed on Friday by Israeli gunfire in northern Gaza near the border with the Jewish state, emergency services and the news agency of the Hamas government said.

The man's body was recovered to the east of the Beit Hanun area, the emergency services said.

Al-Rai news agency of the Islamist movement Hamas which rules the Gaza Strip confirmed "the martyrdom of a young man of around 20 shot by the occupiers' bullets".

An Israeli army spokeswoman, contacted by AFP, had no immediate information on the incident.

But Ashraf al-Qudra, spokesman for the Gaza emergency services, said three other Palestinians were also shot and wounded by Israeli gunfire near the border.

The last killing in Gaza dates back to November 1 when four Hamas militants were killed and five Israeli soldiers wounded during an army operation to destroy a Gaza-Israel tunnel.