Palestinian gunman kills Israeli soldier near illegal West Bank settlement

A Palestinian fighter shot dead an Israeli soldier near a settlement in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, the army said, in an attack claimed by Hamas' armed wing.

Shilo Yosef Amir, 22, is the second Israeli soldier to be killed in a week. He was shot near the settlement of Kedumim, the army said in a statement.

The shooter was later "neutralised" by Israeli forces, it said. Palestinian officials were not able to immediately confirm his condition.

In an earlier statement the army said the shooter had fled. The incident began when Israeli forces stopped a "suspicious vehicle for inspection", the earlier statement said.

"During the inspection, an assailant inside the vehicle opened fire toward them. The forces responded with live fire and the assailant fled," the statement said.

Palestinian sources said that Israeli forces later arrested the assailant's brother and father at their village in the West Bank.

The killing of the Israeli soldier was claimed by Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, the Palestinian group that rules the costal enclave of Gaza.

"Al-Qassam Brigades announce their responsibility for the heroic operation that took place in Kedumim," it said in a statement.

The statement called it a "swift response to the aggressions of the occupation and its aggression against our people in Jenin camp".

Twelve Palestinians were killed this week when Israeli forces carried out a large-scale operation in the West Bank city of Jenin, their biggest assault in years.

The raid, during which an Israeli soldier was also killed, targeted the Jenin refugee camp -- a centre of multiple Palestinian militant groups.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since the 1967 Six-Day War and built many settlements, considered illegal under international law, in the area Palestinians regard as the core of the independent state they are seeking.

Excluding east Jerusalem, the West Bank is home to about 490,000 Israelis living in illegal settlements.

The Palestinians want Israel to withdraw from all land occupied since 1967 and to dismantle all illegal  settlements.

The violence has further escalated since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right coalition government took over late last year. Clashes have mostly concentrated in the northern West Bank.

At least 190 Palestinians, 27 Israelis, one Ukrainian and one Italian have been killed this year, according to an AFP tally compiled from official sources from both sides.