Palestinian man dies of wounds sustained during Israeli raid on refugee camp

Ramallah, March 2

A Palestinian man died of wounds sustained during an Israeli army raid on a refugee camp near the West Bank town of Jericho, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.

The Palestinian liaison office of security coordination with Israel informed the Ministry that Jamal Hamdan, 22, died hours after he was shot by Israeli soldiers in the Aqabat Jabr refugee camp, the Ministry said in a press statement on Wednesday.

Palestinian witnesses said heavy clashes broke out in the refugee camp between dozens of Palestinians and the Israeli soldiers who stormed the camp, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Israeli military confirmed that one Palestinian, who was shot while fleeing the scene, died on the way to a hospital while three others were arrested during the raid. It accused the arrested Palestinians of being behind the killing of an Israeli citizen near Jericho a few days ago.

The tensions have been running high between Israelis and Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since January, leading to the killing of 65 Palestinians and 13 Israelis so far this year, according to official Palestinian and Israeli figures.