JERUSALEM: Palestinian officials in the Gaza Strip said one person was killed Monday in an explosion along Gaza's northern border with Israel.

The cause of the blast was unclear, and medical teams were removing the remains of the dead.

The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a small militant faction, said the dead man was a militant who was killed in an Israeli airstrike as he was carrying out his ''national duties.''

The Israeli military said it was not involved. Army officials said they believed explosives detonated as militants tried to plant a bomb.

Israeli troops frequently clash with Palestinian militants in the border area.