Palestinians say Israeli army killed teenage girl in West Bank raid

Victim, 16, shot in the head while on the roof of her house in Jenin, official news agency reports

A member of the Israeli forces during a clash with Palestinians at Beit El, near Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on December 8. Reuters

A Palestinian hospital announced Israeli forces killed a teenage girl during an army operation in the occupied West Bank early on Monday.

Khalil Suleiman Government Hospital in the northern city of Jenin said Jana Zakaran, 16, was shot in the head.

The official Palestinian news agency reported that Ms Zakaran was on the roof of her house and was found dead after Israeli troops withdrew.

The Israeli military said it was aware of the teenager’s death and that an investigation was under way.

It said troops entered the city and arrested three Palestinians wanted on suspicion of attacks against Israelis. Violence and a heavy exchange of fire erupted between soldiers and those arrested, it said.

The latest incident comes just days after three Palestinians were killed in Jenin on Thursday as violence showed no sign of abating in the occupied West Bank.

Jenin has suffered almost daily raids by Israeli forces, with the military saying the operations are focused on members of militant groups responsible for attacks in Israel that have killed 19 this year.

Figures from the Wafa news agency show 216 Palestinians have been killed so far this year, including 164 in the West Bank.

That marks the deadliest year of the conflict since 2005. The Israeli military has said most of the dead are militants, but stone-throwing youths and others not involved in confrontations have also been killed.

It says the raids are meant to dismantle militant networks and thwart future attacks, but the Palestinians say they entrench Israel’s open-ended occupation, now in its 56th year.

At least 31 people have died in Arab attacks in Israel and the occupied West Bank this year, according to Israeli figures.