JERUSALEM: The Israeli military anno­unced on Tuesday that it had killed two assailants it said attacked soldiers in separate incidents in the occupied West Bank, with the Palestinian Authority identifying the deceased as a 17- and 18-year-old.

The army said the first attack took place on Monday evening near Hebron, in the south of the Palestinian territory, where a female soldier was slightly injured in a car ramming attack.

In a statement, the army said that after pursuing the attacker, Israeli forces tried to apprehend him.

The attacker “attempted to flee while endangering the forces, who responded with live fire”, killing him, the military statement said.

The Palestinian Authority said Israel had informed it that 17-year-old Muhannad Tariq Mohammed al-Zaghir had been killed by Israeli soldiers in Hebron.

The Israeli military said the second attack took place near Ramallah, in the centre of the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967.

Soldiers were dispatched to the area of the Israeli settlement of Ateret after surveillance cameras there “identified a suspect”, the army said in a statement.

Israeli forces “approached him to conduct a security check”, during which “the terrorist stabbed two soldiers”.

“The soldiers responded with fire and eliminated the terrorist,” the statement said.

The Palestinian Auth­ority said it had been informed by Israel that 18-year-old Mohammed Raslan Mahmoud Asmar was fatally shot by Israeli forces north of Ramallah.

Home demolitions

Also on Tuesday, Israel’s army said it had demolished homes in the northern West Bank belonging to Palestinians suspected of different attacks.

The military said in a statement that one home in Nablus belonged to Abd al-Karim Sanoubar, accused of planning multiple bus bombings this February. Footage showed explosives ripping through the home.

The other demolished home was in Aqaba, with the army saying it belonged to Ayman Ghannam, accused of taking part in a deadly shooting attack in 2024.

Aqaba mayor Abdul-Razzaq Abu Ara said there had also been several arrests and a curfew was in place.

Israel regularly destroys the homes of Palestinians accused of carrying out attacks against Israelis.

The government argues the demolitions serve as a deterrent, but critics denounce them as collective punishment that leaves families homeless.

The Israeli army said last week that it had launched a new operation against Palestinian armed groups in the northern West Bank, and had conducted initial raids in the agricultural town of Tubas near the Jordan River.

Published in Dawn, December 3rd, 2025