JERUSALEM: Israeli troops shot dead a Palestinian woman after she approached a soldier with a knife in the southern West Bank, the army said on Wednesday, with Palestinian officials pronouncing her dead.

A statement from the army said the “attempted stabbing” took place near Al Aroub camp, north of the city of Hebron.

“An assailant armed with a knife advanced toward an IDF soldier who was conducting routine security activity on Route 60. The soldiers responded with live fire,” the army said.

“No IDF injuries were reported.” The Palestinian health ministry said the woman died from a bullet to her torso, identifying her as Ghofran Warasnah. The Palestinians’ official news agency Wafa said she was 31.

The Palestinian Prisoners Club said she was a journalist who had been imprisoned by Israel in the past.

Nineteen people, mostly Israeli civilians — including 18 inside Israel and a West Bank Jewish settler — have been killed in attacks by Palestinians and Israeli Arabs since late March.

Published in Dawn, June 2nd, 2022