NEAR RAMALLAH, West Bank, Sept 20 (Reuters) – Violence flared in the occupied West Bank on Sunday when a suspected Palestinian gunman shot dead an Israeli man, police said, and Israeli soldiers killed a Palestinian motorist who the military said was attempting to run them over.
The gunman opened fire from his vehicle at Israelis gathered at a spring near the settlement of Neve Tzuf, near Ramallah, according to the Israeli military and police.
Medics who arrived at the scene of the shooting said they found a man in a car suffering from critical gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at hospital, police said.
The gunman was located a few hours later at a hospital in Ramallah and arrested, police said.
Shortly after the shooting, the military said that its forces “eliminated” a Palestinian driver who had attempted a ramming attack on soldiers near the settlement of Ganim, further north in the West Bank. No soldiers were hurt, it said. Reuters was not able to immediately verify the soldiers’ account.
It was not clear whether the fatal incidents, on the eve of the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur, were connected.
Following the incidents, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had instructed security agencies to beef up their forces and carry out arrests and offensive activities in the area.
Palestinian militant group Hamas praised the shooting attack but did not claim responsibility for it.
Violence has escalated in the West Bank since Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack on Israel and the ensuing Israeli military offensive in Gaza. The West Bank violence has included a sharp rise in attacks by militant settlers on Palestinians, as well as sweeping Israeli military raids and Palestinian attacks on Israelis.
(Reporting by Mohammed Torokman, Lina Obaid and Maayan Lubell; Editing by Aidan Lewis)
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