Israel shut its border crossings with the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, a day after two rockets were fired into the Jewish state, an Israeli official said.

The official said Defence Minister Ehud Barak had "ordered the closure of crossings with Gaza" without saying for how long.

The Israeli military said two rockets were fired from Gaza at Israel on Monday, causing no damage or casualties.

The measure came as U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice visited the region to press ahead with efforts to achieve an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal in the coming months.

Since June a ceasefire has largely calmed violence between the Jewish state and Hamas-ruled Gaza, but rockets are still occasionally fired into Israel. Israel usually responds by shutting crossings the following day.

Palestinians say such border closures amount to collective punishment of the population for the actions of militants.