Palestinian man killed in altercation with Israelis in West Bank

A Palestinian man was shot dead on Thursday in a confrontation between a group of Palestinians and several Israelis near the village of Qusra in the northern West Bank.

The Israeli army claimed in a statement that the Israelis were travellers who had been attacked by the Palestinians, Efe news agency reported.

"Earlier this morning, Palestinians threw rocks at a group of Israeli travellers near the village of Qusra, southeast of Nablus. One of the Israeli civilians fired towards the Palestinians in self-defence," the Israel Defence Forces said on their official Twitter account.

The IDF added that security forces arrived at the scene to evacuate the Israeli group, treat those injured and disperse the protest.

This version of events was contested by Palestinian leaders.

Ghassan Douglas, a Palestinian official in charge of settlements in the area, told Efe that the Israelis were settlers.

Douglas said that the confrontation took place when the Israelis attacked a group of Palestinian farmers who were heading for their fields.

Douglas added that following the death of the Palestinian man, further clashes erupted between the residents of Qusra and Israeli soldiers.

According to the Red Crescent emergency service, the Palestinian ministry of health had confirmed that the man injured by gunfire succumbed to his wounds.

Qusra is under full Israeli military and civilian control, as it is located in Area "C" under the terms of the 1993 Oslo Accords.

--IANS

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