Israeli soldier killed in truck ramming attack at West Bank checkpoint

A truck driver rammed his vehicle near a checkpoint in the occupied West Bank Thursday, killing an Israeli soldier before being shot dead, Israeli officials said.

The truck driver was a 41-year-old Palestinian from the West Bank with a work permit for Israel, Avi Biton, head of police central command, told reporters at the scene of the attack.

"The people he hit with his truck were soldiers," Biton said.

Israeli police earlier said officers had "received a report about a hit-and-run incident near the Maccabim checkpoint." The driver fled before being shot dead at another checkpoint a few kilometres (miles) away at Hashmonaim, west of Ramallah, they said.

Israel's defence ministry said its security personnel at the Hashmonaim checkpoint were informed by the army that the truck was coming their way.

The Magen David Adom emergency service said three young men were hit by the vehicle.

Thursday's attack comes a day after a 14-year-old Palestinian stabbed a civilian at a light rail station in Jerusalem.

It also came hours after four Israeli soldiers were wounded by an explosive device while securing a road for the passage of Jewish pilgrims to Joseph's Tomb in the West Bank city of Nablus.

One of the soldiers was moderately wounded, the others lightly hurt, the army said in a statement.

In Wednesday's incident, an Israeli border police officer who was travelling in a tram saw the attack as it happened and shot dead the teenager who was from east Jerusalem, a predominantly Palestinian area.

More than 200 Palestinians have been killed this year in the occupied territories.

At least 31 Israelis, a Ukrainian, and an Italian have also been killed, according to an AFP tally based on official sources on both sides.

Israel has occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem since 1967.

There are currently over 700,000 Jewish settlers residing illegally across the West Bank and East Jerusalem.