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West Bank: Palestinian woman shot dead by Israeli police at checkpoint

Israeli police said the woman approached them with a knife at the Qalandia checkpoint
Israeli security forces deploy following a reported attack at the Qalandia checkpoint between the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem, on 12 June, 2021 (AFP)

Israeli police shot dead a woman at a West Bank checkpoint, claiming she approached them with a knife.

According to the Palestinian Wafa news agency, eyewitnesses reported that the occupation shot and wounded the woman and left her lying on the ground before closing the barrier completely and preventing vehicles and pedestrians from passing, which caused a traffic hold up.

Israeli police said the woman, aged 28, kept walking towards the guards at the Qalandia crossing, between Ramallah and Jerusalem, despite repeated warnings to stop.

The killing comes a day after a Palestinian teenager was shot dead by the Israeli army on Friday during a protest in the occupied West Bank.

According to Palestinian news agency Wafa, 15-year-old Mohammad Said Hamayel died after Israeli forces opened fire on "a public protest against Israel's construction of a colonial settlement outpost" in Beita, south of the West Bank city of Nablus.

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The Palestinian health ministry said six others had been wounded by live gunfire.

Israeli forces frequently carry out arrest raids in the occupied West Bank. On 25 May, Israeli forces killed a Palestinian during one such raid near Ramallah.

Three Palestinians were also killed in Jenin by Israeli Yamam special forces on Thursday, who were reportedly  on an arrest mission in the northern West Bank.

One of the Palestinians killed was suspected of having carried out a shooting attack against Israeli soldiers, according to an Israeli security official. 

The other two were members of the Palestinian Authority (PA) security forces who witnessed the initial shooting outside the headquarters of the PA Military Intelligence Unit headquarters in Jenin.

Wafa said the men were killed when the Israeli special forces, dressed in civilian clothing, attempted to detain wanted Palestinians outside the building.

A third member of the PA forces was critically wounded in a gun battle with the Israeli agents, according to Wafa.

Around 475,000 Israeli settlers live in the occupied West Bank, which is home to more than 2.8 million Palestinians. 

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