Israel troops shoot dead Palestinian in West Bank

The Israeli regime forces have shot and killed another Palestinian in the West Bank amid escalating violence against the Palestinians in the occupied territories.

According to a statement by Israeli military on Sunday, soldiers opened fire on the Palestinian man after he allegedly sought to stab soldiers at a checkpoint in the south of the city of Nablus, north of the West Bank.

"A Palestinian assailant drew a knife and attempted to stab soldiers securing the area," the military said in a statement, adding, "The force responded and fired towards the attacker, resulting in his death."

No injuries were reported among the Israeli soldiers.

In a separate development, the Israeli military said in a statement on Sunday that a 38-year-old woman was stabbed to death after an attacker broke into her home in the illegal Jewish settlement of Otni'el, which is located near the city of Hebron (al-Khalil) in the south of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Further details were not yet available on the alleged stabbing. The death brings to 24 the number of Israelis killed in the ongoing violence across the occupied territories.

Local residents and witnesses say Israeli regime forces backed by helicopters have launched a massive manhunt to capture the suspect.

On Friday, two Palestinians were killed and several others injured by Israeli forces in al-Barij refugee camp in the besieged Gaza Strip.

Also on Thursday, Israeli troops shot dead a Palestinian in Nablus after he allegedly tried to carry out a stabbing attack.

In mid-December last year, the United Nations strongly denounced the Tel Aviv regime for using "excessive use of force" to curb the ongoing Palestinian uprising across the occupied lands. 

Cecile Pouilly, a spokeswoman for the UN human rights office, warned that "the response from Israeli security forces has resulted in alleged attackers, protesters and even bystanders being killed and injured."

The senior UN rights official demanded an independent investigation into the killing of all Palestinians by Israeli forces.

In recent months, Israeli forces have also destroyed the family homes of several Palestinians for allegedly attacking Israelis.

The growing tensions in the occupied West Bank erupted after Israel imposed restrictions on the entry of Palestinian worshipers into the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East al-Quds (Jerusalem) in August 2015. Al-Aqsa Mosque is the third holiest site in Islam.

The restrictions have enraged Palestinians, who are also angry at growing violence by Israeli settlers frequently storming al-Aqsa. They say the Tel Aviv regime seeks to change the status quo of the compound.

More than 160 Palestinians, including children and women, have lost their lives at the hands of Israeli forces since the beginning of last October 2015.

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