Palestinian teenager shot dead in Israeli raid in West Bank: hospital

Palestinians gather and inspect the damages at a street after clashes between Palestinians and Israeli soldiers in the West Bank city of Jenin, Dec. 12, 2022. (Photo by Nidal Eshtayeh/Xinhua)

JERUSALEM, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- A Palestinian teenage girl died after reportedly being shot by Israeli troops during a raid in the occupied West Bank on Monday.

The local Khalil Suleiman Government Hospital issued a statement pronouncing the death of Jana Majdi Zakarneh, 16, saying she succumbed to a gunshot wound in the head.

The Israeli military confirmed that its soldiers raided Jenin overnight to arrest "individuals suspected of terror involvement," during which clashes and heavy exchange of fire erupted between soldiers and some Palestinians.

"We are aware of the reports of the killing of a Palestinian female," a military spokesperson said in the statement, adding the incident "is under review."

The official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported that Zakarneh was shot while she was on her house rooftop and found dead by her family. Israel's Ha'aretz newspaper reported that she was filming the raid.

The incident was the latest in rising violence in the region, sparked by daily Israeli raids in the West Bank that often trigger clashes and lead to the killing of Palestinians. At least 166 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank since the raids began in March.

Israel maintains that the raids are aimed at arresting suspects in a wave of attacks in Israeli cities in the spring that killed 19 people.