Two Palestinians, including a militant from the radical Islamic Jihad group, have been killed by the Israeli army in the northern West Bank, security and medical officials said. Mohammed Zakarneh, 18, was killed during an army operation in Qabatya village, west of the city of Jenin, and the house where he had taken refuge was partially destroyed by army bulldozers, they said. An army spokesman said Israeli troops fired on militants who were setting up explosive devices. "Forces identified two armed men and opened fire on them. One of them was hit," he said.
A few hours later, 24-year-old Hani Kmeil was also shot and killed by Israeli troops in Qabatya. Palestinian security sources said he was fatally wounded while throwing stones at soldiers. An army spokeswoman said a second Palestinian was killed after forces used rubber bullets to disperse "heavy riots" that later broke out in Qabatya. According to intelligence, the dead man had been "wanted" by the military. A third Palestinian, 16-year-old Ezzedine Smadi, initially taken for dead, was in fact "very seriously wounded," medical and security sources told AFP.