RAMALLAH, Palestinian Territories, July 27, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - Israeli troops killed a Palestinian teenager during an overnight raid in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry and official media said Thursday.

The shooting occurred in the town of Qalqilya in the northern West Bank, which has seen a surge of violence since early last year.

"The occupation forces had stormed the Naqar neighbourhood in the west of Qalqilya, which led to clashes," the official Wafa news agency reported.
"The occupation forces fired live and rubber bullets, stun grenades and tear gas at residents and their homes."

The Israeli army said it would release a statement "as soon as possible".
The Palestinian health ministry identified the dead teenager as Fares Abu Samrah, 14, and said he died of bullet wounds to the head.

On Wednesday, a Palestinian was killed in the main northern West Bank city of Nablus during what the army described as "counter-terrorism activity" in the city.

On Tuesday, Israeli troops killed three Palestinian militants in an exchange of fire in Nablus.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since the Six-Day War of 1967.

Since early last year, the territory has seen a string of attacks by Palestinians on Israeli targets, as well as violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinian communities.

So far this year, violence linked to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has killed at least 203 Palestinians, 27 Israelis, one Ukrainian and one Italian, according to an AFP tally compiled from official sources on both sides.

They include, on the Palestinian side, combatants as well as civilians and, on the Israeli side, three members of the Arab minority.

Excluding Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, the West Bank is home to nearly three million Palestinians, as well as around 490,000 Israelis who live in settlements considered illegal under international law.