RAMALLAH — A Palestinian teenager and a young man were shot dead on Sunday night by the Israeli army during a raid on the town of Ya’bad, south of Jenin, in the northern West Bank, according to a Palestinian medical official on Monday.

Director of Jenin Governmental Hospital, Wissam Bakr, told Xinhua that a boy was shot with live ammunition in the chest and face, and another young man was shot in the head and taken to a medical center in the town.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health identified in a brief statement the two Palestinians as 13-year-old Muhammad Rabi’ Jamal Hamarsheh and 20-year-old Ahmad Mahmoud Zaid.

Local Palestinian sources said that Israeli forces stormed the town and opened fire at them, resulting in their deaths.

The Israel Defense Forces said its soldiers spotted that the pair were carrying explosives, which they hurled at security forces, and soldiers then opened fire, killing both of them, according to Israeli media on Monday.

Since Oct. 7, 2023, the West Bank has been witnessing an increasing escalation that has killed more than 770 Palestinians, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

XINHUA