RAMALLAH, WEST BANK -- Palestinian health officials on Friday said a 17-year-old youth was shot and killed by Israeli troops during a clash in the occupied West Bank.
The shooting occurred in Nebi Saleh, a village where residents have held numerous demonstrations over the years against the expansion of a nearby Israeli settlement on what they say is their land.
The official Palestinian news agency Wafa identified the teen as Mohammed Tamimi, a member of a large extended family that lives in the village.
Bilal Tamimi, a resident and relative of the teen, said he was shot in the back during a clash that erupted after Israeli troops entered the village. Further details were not immediately available, and the Israeli military said it was investigating.
A large protest also took place Friday in Beita --- a village in the northern West Bank where Palestinians have held weeks of protests against an unauthorized Israeli settlement outpost they say was built on their land. Under a deal in June between the Israeli government and the settlers of the Eviatar outpost, the settlers left the area but its buildings were left intact under army guard.
The Palestinian Red Crescent medical service said 21 people were wounded by Israeli fire and dozens of others were hit by rubber bullets. None of the injuries were serious, officials said.
In a statement, the Israeli military said hundreds of Palestinian protesters had hurled stones at troops. It said troops had responded with unspecified fire and gave no further details.
Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians seek the area as the heartland of a future independent state. Most of the international community considers the settlements illegal and obstacles to peace.
