Israeli soldiers shot and killed a drug smuggler who infiltrated from Egypt on Wednesday, a military spokesman said.

The smuggler was part of a group, some of whose members were armed, that crossed into Israel's southern desert carrying bags of drugs, the spokesman said.

Some of the smugglers, he said, fled back into Egypt after the shooting, leaving the drugs on the Israeli side of the border.

Israel coordinated its actions with Egypt, the official said. Egypt is one of two Arab countries with which Israel has a peace treaty, signed in 1979.