Palestinian shot and killed after stabbing Israeli policeman near settlement

A Palestinian attacker was shot and killed on Wednesday after he rammed his vehicle into an Israeli checkpoint in the occupied West Bank and stabbed a police officer there, Israeli police said.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the attack took place near the settlement of Maale Adumim, east of occupied East Jerusalem, and a sweep of the area found a pipe bomb at the scene. The Israeli policeman was moderately wounded, he said.

Video footage of the incident shows a white van veering off a road on to the curb and ramming into the officer, hurtling him several feet back. The assailant is then seen jumping out of the vehicle with what looks like a pair of scissors and lunging at the injured policeman.

A scuffle ensues with the policeman retreating and the assailant giving chase before other officers on the scene pursue him off-camera. Police said the other officers on the scene eventually shot the attacker and killed him.

Such Palestinian attacks on Israeli police and military positions in the West Bank have been a frequent occurrence in recent years but have tapered off significantly in recent months, especially since the outbreak of the coronavirus in the region pushed many indoors.

But earlier this week, Israeli forces thwarted a potential attack with Palestinians hurling firebombs at Israeli vehicles.

A series of dozens of so-called lone wolf attacks broke out in the occupied West Bank in late 2015. The situation has since calmed, but sporadic attacks continue.

In a separate incident Wednesday morning, a 23-year-old Palestinian who was jailed in an Israeli prison died in unclear circumstances.

The Palestinian Prisoners' Club said Nour Barghouti collapsed in an Israeli jail and died shortly after.

The Israeli Prisons' Service said that a detainee, whom it did not name, was found unconscious in his cell Tuesday night, was taken to hospital and later died there.

It said he was serving an eight-year sentence for throwing molotov cocktails at Israelis and for firearms offences.