Israel forces martyr Palestinian who fired at West Bank checkpoint

JERUSALEM (AFP) - Israeli forces on Saturday martyred a Palestinian gunman who opened fire on a checkpoint north of Jerusalem, lightly wounding a guard.

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade, a Palestinian militant group, in a statement said "our heroic fighters... were able to directly target occupation (Israeli) soldiers at Qalandia checkpoint."

The shooting follows a series of deaths in the West Bank this week, including four Israelis fatally shot in a Palestinian attack, and 10 Palestinians martyred in an Israeli raid and subsequent drone strike.

So far this year, violence linked to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has martyred at least 175 Palestinians and killed 25 Israelis, including a Ukrainian and an Italian.

The tally compiled from official sources includes combatants as well as civilians and, on the Israeli side, three members of the Arab minority.

The Qalandia checkpoint is the main gateway used by Palestinians between annexed east Jerusalem and Ramallah, seat of the Palestinian Authority in the occupied West Bank.