BEIJING, July 1 -- China has expressed heart-felt sorrow over the killing of three Jewish teenagers in the West Bank, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said here Tuesday.

He told a daily press briefing, "We strongly condemn all types of violent actions against civilians."

He called for Palestine and Israel to step up cooperation to find out the truth of the incident as soon as possible.

"In the meantime, we also call for all relevant parties to remain calm and restraint and avoid taking excessive actions," Hong said.

According to media reports, the Israeli military on Monday found the bodies of the three Israeli teens in the West Bank. They went missing on June 12.

Israel blamed the killings on Hamas and launched airstrikes on 34 targets across the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip on Tuesday. Palestinian medics said one Palestinian was killed by the Israeli military in the West Bank on a Tuesday raid.

Hamas has dismissed the Israeli allegations. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri accused Israel of fabricating the kidnapping as an excuse to crack down on the movement.