Israeli forces killed a Palestinian early Thursday near a flashpoint holy site in the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, the Palestinian health ministry said.
"A citizen was killed by the occupation (Israeli) bullets in Nablus," a statement from the ministry said, without elaborating on the identity of the deceased and adding that three other injured had arrived at hospital.
The Israeli army did not immediately comment on the incident.
The incident came amid rising tension in the West Bank, following a string of Palestinian attacks on Israeli settlers, and violence by Israeli settlers towards Palestinians.
Witnesses told AFP that the army was escorting a group of Israelis to a religious site near Nablus when dozens of Palestinians set fire to tires and threw explosive devices and stones at soldiers.
The Israelis were headed to Joseph's Tomb, believed to be the last resting place of the biblical patriarch Joseph, a site for regular violence in the West Bank, and revered as a holy site.
The army regularly escorts pilgrims to the site, while Palestinians claim the visits are a provocation.
Violence linked to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict this year has killed at least 196 Palestinians, 27 Israelis, one Ukrainian and one Italian, according to an AFP tally compiled from official sources from both sides.
They include, on the Palestinian side, combatants and civilians, and on the Israeli side, mostly civilians and three members of the Arab minority.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. Around 490,000 Israelis live in the territory in settlements considered illegal under international law.
