Two Arab gunmen shot and murdered two police officers on a downtown street in Israel on Sunday during a visit to the nation by the US secretary of state and three Arab foreign ministers for a meeting.

In a statement released on its Telegram channel, Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack.

We condemn today’s terrorist attack in Hadera, Israel. Such senseless acts of violence and murder have no place in society. We stand with our Israeli partners and send our condolences to the families of the victims.

— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) March 27, 2022

Israeli security authorities claimed the two assailants in Hadera, a city about 50 kilometers (30 miles) north of Tel Aviv, were Arab citizens of Israel and sympathizers with the group.

"We condemn the terrorist attack that occurred today in Hadera, Israel," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken tweeted. "Such irrational acts of violence and murder have no place in a civilized society. We stand in solidarity with our Israeli partners and extend our sympathies to the victims' families."

The attack came five days after an Arab from southern Israel stabbed and rammed at least four Israelis in the city of Beersheba before being fatally shot by a passerby.

According to surveillance camera footage shown on Israeli news stations, two men opened fire with assault rifles on the main street in Hadera.

The assailants killed two members of Israel's paramilitary border police, police said. The two gunmen were shot and killed by police officers dining nearby.

"Fortunately, our officers were able to neutralize the attackers and avert a larger terrorist attack," Israel's national police spokesman Eli Levy told Israel's Kan television.

The foreign ministers of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco, three nations that normalized relations with Israel in 2020, convened for a conference in Israel's southern Negev desert, with Blinken in attendance.

Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid "briefed foreign ministers attending the Negev Summit on the details of the Hadera terror attack," the Israeli foreign ministry tweeted.

"All foreign ministers condemned the attack and expressed their condolences to the victims' families and wished for the speedy recovery of the injured," the ministry stated.

Israeli security authorities have warned against an increase in attacks against Israelis in the run-up to the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in April – a historically tough season.

On Monday, Jordan's King Abdullah is scheduled to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the occupied West Bank. Israel views a bid to de-escalate tensions ahead of the holiday season, encompassing Easter and Passover.