Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday threatened to inflict “very strong blows” on Hamas after fresh violence along the border with the Gaza Strip controlled by the Islamist group.

“Hamas has apparently not understood the message — if these attacks do not stop, they will be stopped in another way, in the form of very, very strong blows”, Netanyahu said during the weekly cabinet meeting.

Seven Palestinians were killed in clashes along the Gaza border on Friday and Israel suspended fuel deliveries, having accused Hamas of using demonstrations as cover for attacks against the Jewish state.