Israel troops shoot dead woman in alleged West Bank knife attack

The Palestinian health ministry said Israeli troops killed a 30-year-old woman near the West Bank city of Salfit on Tuesday after what the army described as an attempted stabbing.

 The ministry reported the death of Amana Ibrahim Mohammed Yaqub, 30, "who was shot by (Israeli) forces near Salfit", south of Nablus.

The Israeli military said it had "neutralised a terrorist who hurled rocks and attempted to stab soldiers adjacent to the Gitai Avisar junction" close to the West Bank village of Hares.

An AFP journalist reported seeing Yaqub's lifeless body by the roadside.

Footage shared on social media showed her lying on her back under a blanket, surrounded by soldiers. 

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Yaqub was a lawyer and mother of three from nearby Biddya, the village's mayor, Ahmed Abu Safiyeh, told AFP.

The area around Salfit is dense with Israeli settlements, including the town of Ariel. 

Since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023, violence has soared in the occupied West Bank. Israeli troops and settlers have killed at least 918 Palestinians in the territory, according to health ministry figures. 

Palestinian attacks and clashes during military raids have killed at least 33 Israelis, including soldiers, over the same period, according to Israeli figures.