An Israeli air strike has killed seven militants believed to be linked to the Islamic State group and seeking to infiltrate the country from the Syrian Golan Heights, the army said Thursday.

 

The military carried out the strike late Wednesday after the militants crossed a ceasefire line and came within a few hundred metres of the fence leading to the Israeli-held Golan Heights, spokesman Jonathan Conricus told journalists.

 

An Israeli aircraft "struck those seven suspects, and today in searches that have been completed on the ground by Israeli troops we found seven bodies in that location, we found five AK-47 assault rifles, we found explosive vests as well as what appears to be grenades," Conricus said.

 

A Syrian offensive in the country's south has resulted in IS-affiliated groups scattering in the area, Conricus said.

 

Israeli forces monitored the militants' movements before carrying out the strike, he said.

 

"Had they been able to continue, they would have come to the Israeli security fence," Conricus said.

 

He said Israeli forces believed they were "on a terrorist mission" and "trying to infiltrate into Israel."

 

"It did not seem as if they were fleeing, seeking refuge," Conricus said. "It seems as if they were moving in a combat formation, with combat equipment."