GAZA, Jan 6 (Reuters) - The Israeli army shot dead a Palestinian on Sunday during a raid into the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, Palestinian medical officials said.

Israeli ground forces entered central Gaza around dawn, sparking clashes with Palestinian militants.

Palestinian medical officials identified the dead man as an 18-year-old civilian. Two militants were also injured.

An army spokeswoman confirmed that a force has been operating in the area since dawn, but had no information about any casualties.

Israel recently stepped up attacks against militants in Gaza in a bid to curb cross-border rocket fire from the territory.

(Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi; Writing by Joseph Nasr)

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