Jerusalem [Israel], September 6: Israeli forces shot dead a Palestinian man at a military checkpoint in the northern West Bank on Friday, the army and Palestinian officials said.
The Israeli military said the man, described as a "terrorist," approached troops near the village of Burin, southwest of Nablus, and threw a suspicious object. It said he ignored soldiers' instructions, prompting them to use live fire during "a standard arrest procedure." No Israeli soldiers were hurt.
Palestine's official WAFA news agency identified the man as Ahmed Abdel Fattah Shahadeh, 57, from the town of Urif in the Nablus Governorate. It said troops opened fire near the Al-Murabba'a checkpoint.
Ahmed Ameed, director of the Red Crescent Ambulance and Emergency Center in Nablus, said ambulance crews were dispatched after reports of gunfire but were prevented by soldiers from reaching the wounded man.
In a separate statement, the Israeli army said that over the past week it had arrested 70 Palestinians, seized rifles and pistols, and destroyed explosive devices in several West Bank villages.
More than 720,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, home to about 3.3 million Palestinians. Israel captured the territories in the 1967 Middle East war and has since built settlements there. The settlements and the occupation are considered illegal under international law.
Source: Xinhua
