Israeli forces kill two Palestinians in Jerusalem, West Bank clashes

Israeli forces killed a Palestinian who carried out a stabbing attack in Jerusalem on Thursday, police said, and medics said another Palestinian was shot dead by the army as it raided the occupied West Bank. Violence in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, among territories where Palestinians seek statehood, has surged in recent months after Israel launched a crackdown in response to a spate of lethal street attacks in its cities.

Israeli forces killed a Palestinian who carried out a stabbing attack in Jerusalem on Thursday, police said, and medics said another Palestinian was shot dead by the army as it raided the occupied West Bank.

Violence in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, among territories where Palestinians seek statehood, has surged in recent months after Israel launched a crackdown in response to a spate of lethal street attacks in its cities. The security situation was among factors contributing to far-right gains in an Israeli election on Tuesday that put conservative former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on track to return to power.

Overnight, Israeli forces raided Beit Duqu, the West Bank hometown of a Palestinian who was shot dead on Wednesday while carrying out a car-ramming and stabbing attack that wounded an Israeli army officer. Palestinians hurled rocks and petrol bombs at the soldiers, who responded with riot-dispersal means and live fire, the army said. A 45-year-old Palestinian man was killed, medics said.

In Jerusalem's Old City, Israeli police said a Palestinian stabbed an officer while undergoing a security search. Officers shot the assailant dead, police said, describing him as a resident of East Jerusalem. Palestinian authorities had no immediate comment.

Medics said one officer suffered a bullet wound, which Israeli media described as a result of stray gunfire. The incident took place near Al Aqsa, a major mosque and icon of Palestinian nationalism. It is also a vestige of two ancient Jewish temples, where rightist Israelis want Jewish prayers permitted - a provocation in the eyes of many Muslims.