The Israeli military said Wednesday that troops killed a Palestinian man who had shot at soldiers near an army checkpoint in the West Bank.
The military said in a statement that the Palestinian gunman opened fire at a military post south of the city of Nablus, and troops returned fire. The military said the gunman was killed. The army said no troops were wounded.
The man was identified as a 28-year-old Balal Ruajba - member of the Palestinian Authority's security forces. According to Palestinians, the suspect served in the preventive security unit, which is similar to Israel's Shin Bet service, and held the rank of a captain.
The PA blamed Israeli forces for the incident and said the Palestinian was "executed". "May God have mercy on you, Bilal. We came from Allah and to Him we return," said the PA's Foreign Ministry in Facebook post.
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A Palestinian ambulance at an intersection on the West Bank after a Palestinian militant was shot dead after opening fire at IDF troops
(Photo: TPS)
The incident came a few days after another IDF force opened fire at a group of suspected terrorists hurling firebombs at the troops near the city of Jenin on the northern side of the West Bank.
One member of the group was identified as the son of a prominent Palestinian militant, who is interned in an Israeli jail on terrorism charges.
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IDF forces near Nablus where a Palestinian militant was shot dead after opening fire at IDF troops
(Photo: TPS)
Israel has seen a series of shootings, stabbings and car-ramming attacks in recent years, mostly carried out by lone attackers with no apparent links to armed groups. Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups have praised the attacks but have not claimed them.
Palestinian and Israeli rights groups have accused Israel of using excessive force in some instances, and of killing some suspected attackers who could have been apprehended.
First published: 12:48, 11.04.20