JERUSALEM: Two Palestinians were killed in the occupied West Bank Friday, one of them by an Israeli settler, as a surge of Israeli-Palestinian violence shows no letup.

An Israeli settler shot dead a Palestinian suspected attacker at Dorot Illit settlement in the northern West Bank, the army said.

Occupied by Israel since the 1967 war, the West Bank is home to hundreds of thousands of Jewish settlers who live in state-approved settlements considered illegal under international law.

“A terrorist armed with knives and explosive devices arrived at the Dorot Illit area” before the settler spotted the assailant, opened fire and ‘neutralised’ him, the army said, later confirming he had been killed.

The Palestinian health ministry identified him as Abd al-Karim al-Sheikh, 21.

Later on Friday, Israeli troops shot dead a Palestinian teenager in the northern West Bank town of Qalqilya. The health ministry identified him as Amir Odeh, 16.

The Israeli military said he “threw a petrol bomb at troops from close range”, and the soldiers “responded by opening fire”.

Published in Dawn, March 11th, 2023