By Said Amori
JERUSALEM (AA) – A Palestinian was killed Sunday by the Israeli army, claiming he attempted a car-ramming attack near the illegal Ari’el settlement in the northern occupied West Bank.
"A report was received about an attack from a passing vehicle at the Ari’el intersection, and the attacker was killed immediately,” the Israeli army said in a brief statement.
"Israeli army forces are deployed in the area,” it added.
Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth also reported that Israeli forces fired at two Palestinians, alleging they tried to carry out a car-ramming attack against its personnel.
Tensions have been running high across the West Bank since Israel launched a military offensive against the Gaza Strip that has killed over 40,400 Palestinians since last October.
In a landmark advisory opinion on July 19, the International Court of Justice declared Israel's decades-long occupation of Palestinian land unlawful and demanded the evacuation of all existing settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala in Istanbul