Usama Adawi, 18, was killed “by occupation [Israeli military] live fire to the stomach in the Al-Aroub camp,” in the southern West Bank, the Health Ministry said.

Ramallah, October 13 (RHC)-- Israeli forces have shot dead a Palestinian in a refugee camp in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry has said.   Usama Adawi, 18, was killed “by occupation [Israeli military] live fire to the stomach in the Al-Aroub camp,” in the southern West Bank, the Health Ministry said.

The official Palestinian news agency Wafa said he was killed in confrontations during which Israeli forces shot at Palestinians and used tear gas.  Another person was injured in the Al-Aroub camp and was in moderate condition in hospital, Wafa reported.

The Israeli military said soldiers pursued people who were throwing rocks towards vehicles on a road near the camp.  “[Soldiers] spotted the suspects adjacent to the refugee camp … and responded with live fire towards them.  A hit was identified,” an army statement said.

The shooting comes a day after an Israeli soldier was shot and killed in the northern West Bank, prompting a continuing manhunt.  Security forces are also in pursuit of a gunman who killed a soldier at a checkpoint in Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem on Saturday.

Palestinians went on strike on Wednesday in occupied East Jerusalem to protest the Israeli operation in Shuafat refugee camp next to the checkpoint, which has choked off entry and exit points out of the area, severely impeding daily life for residents.  Police have been setting up checkpoints in the camp and deploying groups of armed officers to question residents. The heavy police presence has sparked intense confrontations with residents.

An AFP journalist witnessed confrontations in the camp on Wednesday, with Israeli forces firing tear gas at Palestinians who were throwing stones.  Thousands of Jewish worshippers are also flocking to Jerusalem to mark the weeklong holiday of Sukkot, putting the city on edge.

Separately, Wafa reported that two Palestinian protesters were wounded by Israeli forces during a protest against the operation in the Shuafat refugee camp on the outskirts of Ramallah. The protesters were admitted to the Palestine Medical Complex, one with serious injuries after being hit by a live bullet in the shoulder which settled in his chest.  The other patient was hit in the abdomen, but reported to be in moderate condition.

Earlier, a 22-year-old was hit in the eye with a rubber-coated metal bullet fired by Israeli soldiers during confrontations at the northern entrance of Bethlehem, Wafa reported.  Adawi is among the more than 100 Palestinians killed in the occupied West Bank so far in 2022, the worst spasm of violence in seven years.

Dozens of Palestinians have been killed during Israeli military raids in the occupied West Bank in recent months.  The near-daily operations were launched following a series of deadly attacks on Israelis earlier this year.