The Israeli army recently deployed an artillery battery on the border with the besieged Gaza Strip, an Israeli army spokesperson confirmed Thursday.

The spokesperson told Ma’an that the battery arrived on the border on Jan. 18, although she was unable to specify where it had been deployed.

Israeli media reported the deployment to be an unusual move, suggesting that in recent years, artillery battery have typically been deployed near Gaza ahead of escalating hostilities.

Earlier this month, a Gazan was killed and three seriously wounded when Israeli artillery bombarded an alleged “terrorist cell” east of Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip.

However, the army spokesperson on Thursday downplayed the possibility that the artillery battery was a sign of possibly escalating violence between Israeli forces.

“The new forces along the Gaza border arrived as part of routine unit movement,” she said. “There is no specific operational purpose for movement in the area.”

(MAAN)