Israeli soldiers on Tuesday shot and killed three Palestinians in Nablus, in the northern West Bank, according to both Palestinian and Israeli sources.
Palestinian security sources and eyewitnesses reported that Israeli troops stormed a Palestinian vehicle and opened fire. They also said the soldiers blocked Palestinian ambulances from reaching the vehicle and detained the vehicle along with the bodies of the three deceased Palestinians.
An Israeli military spokesman told Israel Radio that the troops returned fire after three armed Palestinians initiated gunfire at an Israeli checkpoint near Nablus.
The spokesman said the three alleged assailants targeted soldiers stationed near the checkpoint, from a distance of 100 meters. The soldiers returned fire, resulting in the deaths of all three.
A series of attacks by Palestinians since the beginning of the year have killed around 25 people, most of them Israelis. Approximately 200 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli soldiers and citizens during the same period.