Clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinian militants took place on Thursday morning in southern Gaza strip, Palestinian sources said.

"The Israeli ground forces rolled in for tens of meters, sparking heavy exchange of fire with Palestinian militants from different factions," witnesses told Xinhua.

Militants from Saraya al-Quds, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad, fired up to six mortar shells at the force, the group said in a statement sent to media.

There has been no report of casualties.

The Israeli army has escalated its operations along the border fence between the Gaza Strip and its territories, saying the incursions were preventive, aiming at stopping possible Palestinian attacks.

Meanwhile, the Israeli army arrested eight Palestinians from different areas in the West Bank, Palestinian local sources said.

Israeli sources said that the detainees were wanted and they were taken for interrogation.

Though Israel and the Palestinian Authority maintain security agreements, the Israeli army raids the West Bank neighborhoods almost on daily basis.

(Xinhua News Agency July 31, 2009)