A 15-YEAR-old Palestinian has been killed by Israeli gunfire in the occupied West Bank when clashes erupted after Israeli forces stormed a refugee camp near Nablus in search of a suspect.

The Palestinian health ministry said Imad Khaled Saleh Hashash died after sustaining a gunshot wound to the head in the Balata refugee camp.

The Israeli army said it had conducted an overnight operation in the camp to apprehend “a suspect”.

“During the mission, live ammunition was fired at troops from rooftops. The troops responded with fire towards the sources of the shooting,” it said in a statement.

According to the army, rioting then broke out, with residents hurling blocks and other objects from rooftops at Israeli soldiers.

“During the riot, a number of soldiers spotted a suspect on a rooftop holding a large object in his hands, attempting to throw it at an (Israeli) soldier standing underneath the building.

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“One of the soldiers responded with live fire and a hit was identified,” the statement added, without commenting directly on the teenager’s death.

Deadly unrest is common in the West Bank, a Palestinian territory Israeli has occupied since 1967.

Earlier this month, four Palestinians were killed in clashes with Israeli security forces in the restive Jenin refugee camp.