HEBRON: A Palestinian was shot dead Friday after stabbing an Israeli soldier at an army post near Hebron in the occupied West Bank, the Israeli army and the Palestinian health ministry said.

“An assailant armed with a knife” approached a military post and stabbed a soldier, the army said in a statement, adding that another soldier opened fire and “neutralized” the assailant.

It said the “moderately” wounded soldier was “evacuated to a hospital for medical attention, while fully conscious, and his family has been informed.”

The Palestinian health ministry said it had been informed of the death of a young man near Hebron, but did not immediately identify him.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, when it captured the territory from Jordan.

About 475,000 Jewish settlers currently live in the West Bank in communities considered illegal by most of the international community, alongside some 2.8 million Palestinians.

AFP