Israeli soldier hurt earlier in West Bank dies of injuries

An Israeli soldier critically injured in the occupied West Bank on Thursday died of his injuries on Saturday, an army statement said.

The English-language statement said that Sergeant Ronen Lubarsky, 20, of the Duvdevan special forces unit, died during the morning, two days after being struck on the head by a stone block thrown during an arrest raid.

Israeli media said that the block was a granite slab dropped from a third-floor window.

Lubarsky was evacuated to Hadassah University Hospital in Ein Karem in Jerusalem, where he was sedated and hooked up to a respirator, Haaretz said on its website. Though he was wearing full protective gear at the time of the incident, the impact of the slab shattered his helmet and caused severe impact to his head.

Palestinian sources said the incident took place during a night operation attempting to arrest suspects in al-Amari refugee camp in the city of Ramallah, seat of the Palestinian Authority.

Amari camp, home to 15,000 Palestinians, is a regular flashpoint where Israeli raids have sparked fierce clashes in the past.

Israeli forces regularly carry out night raids in Palestinian-governed parts of the West Bank to arrest Palestinians suspected of militant activities against Israel.

The Israeli military said that the troops had been seeking Palestinian militant gunmen.

"The operational activity in which [Lubarsky] participated was intended to apprehend a squad of operatives who were involved in shooting attacks," it said.

Posthumously promoted

It added that he was promoted posthumously to the rank of staff sergeant.

His attacker has not been identified, though three Palestinian suspects were taken to the Shin Bet security service for questioning, Haaretz reported.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed his "deep sorrow" at the soldier's death.

"The security forces will reach the terrorist and the state of Israel will bring him to reckoning," a statement from his office quoted him as saying in Hebrew. 

Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman said that Duvdevan was at the forefront of the raids.

"Duvdevan, one of our elite units, conducts many arrests every night in an endless war that has no publicity and no glory," he wrote on his official Twitter account.

"We shall bring Ronen justice," he added.