A Palestinian youth was killed by Israeli forces near an illegal settlement in the southern occupied West Bank on Saturday after he allegedly stabbed a soldier, Israeli security sources said.

Israeli police spokeswoman Luba al-Samri said Israeli border police at Abu al-Rish checkpoint near the illegal Kiryat Arba settlement on the outskirts of Hebron noticed a “suspicious” young Palestinian. When asked to show his identity card, the Palestinian “pulled out a knife” and stabbed a soldier, lightly injuring him in the head, al-Samri added.

Other soldiers fired at the youth, killing him.

The victim’s brother told Ma’an the young Palestinian was 18-year-old Abdullah Muhammad al-Ajlouni from Hebron.

Witnesses told Ma’an that the soldiers “showered” al-Ajlouni with bullets, adding that Israeli forces had closed all entrances to the Ibrahimi mosque in the old city of Hebron following the attack.

Shortly after the killing, Israeli forces closed down several roads in Hebron. Locals told Ma’an Israeli forces closed an iron gate at the entrance of al-Fahs road in southern Hebron, as well as another gate at the entrance of Farsh al-Hawa neighborhood in the western part of the city. A major road on the eastern outskirts of Hebron was also shut off with earth mounds.

An Israeli army spokesperson confirmed that “a few” roads had been blocked in Hebron.

(MAAN)