Israeli soldiers kill Palestinian in occupied West Bank

A Palestinian was shot dead Friday after stabbing an Israeli soldier at an army post near Hebron in the occupied West Bank, the Israeli army and the Palestinian health ministry said.

A young man near the occupied West Bank city of Hebron was killed, the Palestinian health ministry said without immediately identifying him.

The Israeli army said in a statement that "an assailant armed with a knife" approached a military post and stabbed the occupying soldier, and was "neutralised" on spot by another soldier.

The army said the "moderately" wounded soldier was "evacuated to a hospital for medical attention, while fully conscious, and his family has been informed".

Since the beginning of 2022, Israeli forces have killed more than 140 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Rights groups have repeatedly slammed Israeli forces for showing "appalling disregard for human life" by using "reckless and unlawful lethal force" against Palestinians.

Amnesty International has repeatedly urged an end to the "worrying rise in unlawful killings by Israeli forces, fostered by a culture of impunity".

The West Bank, which has been occupied by Israeli forces since the 1967 Six-Day war, is home to nearly 700,000 Jewish settlers, living in communities deemed illegal under international law.