Israeli Troops Kill Palestinian Suspected of Driving Car Into West Bank Checkpoint

Israeli forces shot dead a Palestinian in a car they were pursuing in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday; Palestinian paramedics said.

The Israeli military said troops shot a Palestinian who had fired at them from a vehicle.

The driver "accelerated his car towards a manned military post" next to Mevo Dotan in the occupied West Bank; the military said; AFP reported.

Soldiers opened fire and the car crashed into an Israeli army vehicle; setting both on fire. No soldiers were injured; a military statement said.

The attack happened near the site of an ambush last Thursday in which Palestinian gunmen killed an Israeli motorist as he left a yeshiva in the former settlement outpost of Homesh.

There have been several Palestinian attacks on Israelis in recent weeks.

Palestinians also complain of attacks by settlers; whose residence in the West Bank the international community considers illegal.

Tor Wennesland; the United Nations Mideast peace envoy; last week said he was "alarmed" by the recent escalation of violence on both sides; saying the situation had become "volatile".

In Gaza; the Islamist militant group Hamas praised the latest incident but did not take responsibility.