Israeli fire kills four Palestinians in West Bank

Israeli forces killed four Palestinians in separate incidents in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, Palestinian and Israeli officials said, reports AFP. 

Two brothers -- Jawad Abdulrahman Rimawi, 22, and Dhafer Abdul Rahman Rimawi, 21 -- were killed near the hub city of Ramallah and a third man was shot in the head in the town of Beit Ummar near the city of Hebron in clashes with Israeli forces, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.

The Israeli military confirmed the two clashes and said it was aware of the reports of two Palestinians killed near Ramallah and was investigating.

Later in the day, Israel‍‍`s military said a female soldier was moderately injured in a ramming attack around the Kochav Yaakov settlement near Ramallah. The suspected Palestinian attacker was shot by police and later confirmed dead by a doctor at a Jerusalem hospital.

The Israeli military has cracked down on fighter groups and protesters across the West Bank following a number of attacks by Palestinians in Israel earlier this year.

Yesterday‍‍`s clashes began when two Israeli military vehicles stalled outside Beit Ummar during what the army called routine activity and troops opened fire when protesters shot at them and hurled rocks and petrol bombs, the military said.

The incident near Ramallah appeared similar, with troops firing on protesters throwing stones and petrol bombs.

Hundreds gathered outside a Ramallah hospital to pay their respects to the family of the two brothers, both in their early twenties.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said 205 Palestinians have been killed this year, including those who died during a brief conflict in Gaza in August.

According to Israeli military figures, prior to the latest bloodshed, the number of Palestinians killed so far this year stood at 136, including civilians. 

At the same time, 23 Israeli civilians and eight security personnel have been killed in Israel and the West Bank. 

The UN says more than 125 Palestinians have been killed across the West Bank this year.

Hamas, the Islamist movement which runs Gaza, said the Israeli "escalation" would be "confronted by escalating resistance" from Palestinians. 

This week the army announced it had made more than 3,000 arrests.