Israeli police shoot dead Palestinian driver at checkpoint

A Palestinian man was shot and killed in his car by Israeli border police on Tuesday at a checkpoint in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli police claim the motorist drove his car "quickly" towards a border officer, suggesting he was attempting to attack the guards.

However Palestinian sources, who identified the victim as Ahmed Mustafa Erekat, 26, said he was on his way to his sister's wedding and therefore would not be waging an attack on the Container checkpoint, north of Bethlehem.

Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said Erekat: "drove his vehicle quickly towards the direction of a female border police officer who was injured lightly."

However Palestinian activist Hani Halabiyeh claimed that Erekat was driving from his hometown of Abu Dis to Bethlehem for the wedding.

"The young man was driving quickly and lost control, therefore the car veered towards the soldiers' office," Halabi told The New Arab's Arabic-language service.

A video of Erekat's lifeless body lying next to his car was circulated on social media. Israeli soldiers step over the body as blood can be seen flowing across the road.

Israeli forces later sealed off the roads surrounding the checkpoint, according to Palestinian media.

The Container checkpoint, also known as the Qidron crossing or Wadi al-Nar, controls movement between the north and south West Bank.

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