JERUSALEM -- A Palestinian man was killed by Israeli troops and a family member was injured early Thursday during an arrest raid in a West Bank town that is a stronghold of resistance against Israeli occupation.
It was the second fatal shooting in the West Bank in two days and the third episode of its kind this month.
The Palestinian, Falah Abu Marya, 53, was shot in the chest as he threw objects at soldiers from his first-floor balcony during a morning arrest raid in Beit Ommar, said Sarit Michaeli, a spokesman for the Israeli rights group B'Tselem.
Israeli military forces were searching for a Palestinian who had fled his home, fearing arrest. They burst into the residence of Abu Marya's son, Mohammad, presumably to search for the wanted man, Michaeli and a relative of the victim said.
A funeral for Abu Marya was held later Thursday, and Israeli and Palestinian media outlets reported clashes between young men throwing rocks and projectiles and soldiers firing tear gas and rubber bullets. At least five Palestinians were wounded, Palestinian news media said.
Clashes frequently break out between young Palestinians and Israeli soldiers in Beit Ommar, and the military has increasingly been criticized in recent weeks for its use of live fire in the West Bank.
On Wednesday, Israeli military forces shot and killed a 20-year-old Palestinian during an arrest raid in Burkin, a farming town. A military spokesman said Israeli forces had opened fire after Palestinians ignored an order to stop throwing rocks at them. A Palestinian medic said the victim, Mohammad Alawna, was shot in the chest and stomach.
That episode followed the shooting death of another Palestinian, Muhammad Hani al-Kasba, 17, on July 3. Witness accounts and a video suggested the teenager was shot in the back as he fled from soldiers after smashing the windshield of their vehicle with a rock.
Michaeli said it appeared the Abu Marya family was trying to resist as Israeli soldiers entered their home, and that Mohammad Abu Marya was struggling with the soldiers. A soldier shot Mohammad Abu Marya in both legs, said a relative, Mousa Abu Marya, and he was taken to a hospital.
An Israeli military spokesman said a soldier had been attacked during "routine" activity in Beit Ommar and had fired toward the lower part of the attacker's body before leaving the scene. The spokesman, speaking on the condition of anonymity in line with military regulations, would not identify the person who was shot.
As the raid unfolded, Falah Abu Marya also was shot by soldiers while he was throwing objects at Israeli forces, Michaeli said.
The Israeli military spokesman said soldiers fired "toward the main instigator" as "a mob hurled rocks and bricks" at them.
A video of medics trying to revive Abu Marya indicated that he was shot in the chest, an account that was supported by a Red Crescent medic who was at the scene.
Mousa Abu Marya said the soldiers had not offered medical assistance to Falah Abu Marya or to Mohammad Abu Marya.
"They ran away," he said. "Normally when there's a shooting, the soldiers call a doctor or an ambulance, but this time, it was different. They ran away and left the injured in the house."
The Israeli military spokesman said an investigation had been opened into the episode, but human-rights groups said such inquiries rarely lead to the prosecution of military forces.
Elsewhere on Thursday, construction began on the first homes being rebuilt in the Gaza Strip since a war with Israel last summer destroyed much of the territory's infrastructure. The reconstruction began in Shijaiyah, a hard-hit neighborhood of Gaza City.
More than 2,200 Palestinians, including hundreds of civilians, were killed in the 50-day war between Israel and the Islamic militant group Hamas, which governs Gaza. Seventy-three people on the Israeli side died.
The war destroyed 11,900 homes and damaged about 140,000 dwellings, according to the Palestinian public works minister, Mufeed al-Hasayneh.
The first new houses are being rebuilt as part of a project funded by the Persian Gulf monarchy Qatar to reconstruct 1,000 housing units.
Meanwhile, the United Nations' Mideast envoy said Israel and the Palestinians are further apart than ever from achieving a peace agreement that would lead to a two-state solution.
Nickolay Mladenov told the U.N. Security Council on Thursday that support for a Palestinian state existing alongside Israel in peace and security "is fading away." It is threatened by Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory and settlement construction there, violence and security problems, and lack of Palestinian unity, he said.
Mladenov urged the international community to work with the Israelis and Palestinians to return "to meaningful negotiations on the basis of an agreed framework and within a reasonable timeframe."
Information for this article was contributed by Diaa Hadid of The New York Times and by Fares Akram and staff members of The Associated Press.
A Section on 07/24/2015