Three Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces early Tuesday morning in two separate incidents in the West Bank, Palestinian officials said.
The Israeli military did not confirm the death but said its troops came under attack overnight when two military vehicles stalled just outside the town of Beit Ummar, near the city of Hebron. Rioters hurled bombs and fired shots at soldiers who responded with live fire, the military said in a statement.
According to the Palestinian Authority Health Ministry, a 44-year-old Palestinian was killed in clashes that erupted in Beit Ummar, and two more were killed in clashes with in the village of Kafr Ain. The two men, ages 21 and 22, were brothers, according to the Palestinians.
Tensions between Israelis and Palestinians have been surging for months amid nightly Israeli raids in the occupied West Bank prompted by a spate of deadly attacks against Israelis that killed 19 people in the spring.
More than 138 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli-Palestinian fighting in the West Bank and east Jerusalem this year, making it the deadliest year since 2006.
The Israeli army says most of the Palestinians killed have been militants. But stone-throwing youths protesting Israeli army incursions and others not involved in confrontations have also been killed.