JERUSALEM: An Israeli soldier on Sunday shot dead a Palestinian suspected of attempting an attack on troops in the West Bank, the Israeli army said.
The army said in a statement that “an armed assailant with three knives connected to a stick” attempted to attack soldiers at a West Bank junction south of Bethlehem. No soldiers were hurt. The military confirmed the suspected attacker was killed.
Video shared on social media shows a man in a grey sweatshirt walking along the side of a highway. He appears to pull something out of his clothes and begins to run toward a soldier. The soldier appears to fire his weapon, and the man collapses.
The military shared a photo of the alleged weapon, which appears to be a cluster of knives taped to a broom handle.
Israel has seen a series of shootings, stabbings and car-ramming attacks in recent years, mostly carried out by lone Palestinian attackers in the West Bank with no apparent links to armed groups.
Last week, a soldier shot and killed a 17-year-old Palestinian who allegedly attacked troops with a knife in the northern West Bank.
Palestinian and Israeli rights groups have accused Israel of using excessive force in some instances, and of killing some suspected attackers who could have been apprehended.