Israeli forces kill Palestinian in occupied West Bank raid

Israeli soldiers shot and killed a Palestinian man early on Sunday during an arrest raid in the occupied West Bank, the army said.

The Palestinian was identified as Amar Halil, 34, from Nabi Saleh. He was the sixth Palestinian to be killed by Israeli forces since Wednesday.

"The forces encountered the suspect, who attempted to open fire at them," a statement from the Israeli army read.

"In response to the immediate threat forces fired towards the attacker resulting in his death."

Israel's army claimed the suspect was wanted for opening fire at Israelis in the occupied West Bank in two separate incidents on Saturday.

Another Palestinian suspect was lightly wounded and detained during the arrest raid.

Israeli forces routinely enter the occupied West Bank to detain Palestinians, normally under the pretext of security questioning.

More than 6,000 Palestinians are currently jailed by Israel, with detainees considered political prisoners in Palestine.

Escalating tensions

The latest killing comes amid increasing tensions in the occupied Palestinian territories following an attack in the al-Aqsa Mosque compound by Palestinian gunmen which killed two Israeli Druze police officers.

Three Palestinian assailants were shot dead following the attack.

Video footage of the incident showed one gunman being shot dead in the courtyard of the holy site, leading to widespread anger among Palestinians.

Israeli police locked down the area after the attack and closed the al-Aqsa mosque compound for Friday prayers, a highly controversial move.

Israeli authorities also detained Jerusalem's top Muslim cleric, grand mufti Muhammad Ahmad Hussein.

Israel is due to reopen the religious site on Sunday, with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu saying that metal detectors and cameras would be installed in the area.

The attack and its aftermath was one of the most serious incidents in Jerusalem in recent years.

Last week, Israeli military forces killed two Palestinians in the Jenin refugee camp during an arrest raid.

An 18-year-old Palestinian was also shot dead in the Duheisha refugee camp in Bethlehem on Friday during a detention raid.

Agencies contributed to this report.