A Palestinian was shot and injured by Egyptian forces while trying to illegally cross into the country from the Gaza Strip, an Egyptian security official said on Saturday.

Open gallery view A Palestinian woman and her daughter arrive at the Rafah border crossing in the southern Gaza Strip hoping to cross into Egypt on June 1, 2010. Credit: Reuters

The man managed to escape back into Gaza despite his injuries, the source, who declined to be named, told the German Press Agency DPA.

Some Palestinians have attempted to enter Egypt, since Israel imposed a blockade on Gaza when the Palestinian Hamas movement took control of the enclave in 2007.

Egypt reopened its border with Gaza on June 1, following the deadly raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla by Israeli forces. Although Egypt has occasionally opened the Rafah border for three or four-day periods, the latest opening is the first for an indefinite time.

Access is however limited to Palestinians who need medical help and students who study abroad. Around 13,000 Palestinians have crossed the border and tons of medical and humanitarian aid has also been driven into the enclave.

In recent months, Egypt has been criticized for building an underground barrier beneath the border, in a bid to curb the number of smugglers' tunnels between Rafah and the Gaza Strip.