Roundup: 6 Palestinians, 2 Israelis killed in flaring tension on eve of Christmas

On the eve of Christmas, six Palestinians and two Israelis were killed in the ongoing violent tensions that flared in the last 24 hours between the two sides in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, Israeli and Palestinian officials said Thursday.

The Palestinian health ministry in the West Bank said in an emailed press statement that a Palestinian young man was killed and nine injured during fierce clashes with Israeli soldiers near the Palestinian refugee camp of Qalandia in northern Jerusalem.

The statement said the young man was shot in the head by Israeli troops' gunfire, adding that besides the young man's body, nine other injured people were taken to the hospital for medical treatment.

Eyewitnesses said the clashes in Qalandia refugee camp between the Palestinians and the Israeli soldiers broke out when hundreds of angry Palestinian mourners joined the funeral of two Palestinians from the camp, who were killed on Wednesday in a stabbing attack in Jerusalem.

Health ministry spokesman Mohamed Awawdeh told Xinhua that another Palestinian young man was shot dead on Thursday by Israeli troops near the Israeli settlement of Adam northeast of Jerusalem.

However, Israel Public Radio reported that the young man was shot dead after he ran over a group of Israeli soldiers with his car at an Israeli army barrier near the settlement, adding that one of the soldiers was injured and other soldiers opened fire and killed the driver.

Earlier on Thursday, two other Palestinian young men were shot dead in two separate incidents in the West Bank, according to Awawdeh.

He told Xinhua earlier that a Palestinian young man was shot dead by Israeli troops' gunfire at an Israeli army barrier near the southern West Bank city of Hebron.

Israeli Public Radio quoted Israeli army sources as saying the Palestinian young man was shot dead when carried out a stabbing attack against Israeli soldiers at the barrier.

Another Palestinian young man was shot dead near the settlement of Ariel in northwest West Bank, according to the health ministry.

The Israeli radio said that the young man was shot dead by Israeli security forces after he stabbed an Israel security guard with a knife at the entrance to the settlement and moderately wounded him.

Meanwhile, two Palestinians were killed overnight in a stabbing attack near Hebron Gate in east Jerusalem by Israeli police gunfire. Two Israelis were killed in the attack and a third was injured.

The Palestinian health ministry said that the Palestinian death toll since early October grew to 135 and thousands injured, including 26 children and six women, while Israel said that 22 Israelis were killed in a series of stabbing and shooting, as well as car-ramming attacks in the West Bank, east Jerusalem as Israel.

The wave of violent tension between the two sides broke out in early October in response to Israeli measures against al-Aqsa Mosque compound in east Jerusalem and against the Israeli settlers' assaults on the mosques and homes of residents of villages close to Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

Local observers said that the chances of ending violence between the two sides and resuming the stalled peace peace talks are slim. Endit