IDF units intercepted a Hamas commando terrorist unit seeking to infiltrate Israel from the sea at Zikim beach on Tuesday.
The IDF Spokesman reported that soldiers killed four terrorists.
A senior security official said an IDF force was dispatched to Zikim beach after the military detected suspicious movements in the area.
The unit engaged the terrorists, and shot and struck a number of them.
One soldier was lightly injured in the exchange of fire.
Civilian eye witnesses told Channel 2 that soldiers were seen running toward the beach from the Zikim army base and firing their weapons, while a boat approached the beach firing at the beach.
Police closed off the vicinity and told local residents told to stay indoors.
Hamas's military wing the al-Qassam Brigades claimed on its twitter account to have perpetrated the attack, saying that it "stormed the Zionist naval base on the shores of the sea."