Three Palestinians killed by Israeli occupation forces in West Bank

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM — Three Palestinians were shot dead in the occupied West Bank, in rising violence following Washington's controversial Middle East peace plan.

Occupation forces said that a car-ramming targeting Israeli forces in Jerusalem wounded 14 people.  

A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas blamed US President Donald Trump's peace proposal for the unrest.

"It was the deal of the century that created this atmosphere of escalation and tension," Nabil Abu Rudeina said.

The Islamist Hamas movement, which controls the Gaza Strip, hailed the car-ramming as a "practical response" to Trump's plan.

In a statement, Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said the attack was part of the "resistance operation" but stopped short of claiming responsibility.

The Palestinians have angrily rejected Trump's plan, which unilaterally gives Israel most of what it has sought in previous negotiations including an "undivided capital" in Jerusalem.

Trump's adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner was scheduled to meet UN Security Council members on Thursday to present the plan, which he drew up.

Abbas is due at the UN next week to express opposition to the US initiative.

While the initial Palestinian response to the plan saw little violence, tensions have soared in recent days.

In the northern West Bank town of Jenin on Thursday, Israeli forces shot dead two people — 19-year-old Yazan Abu Tabikh and Palestinian policeman Tareq Badwan.

In the Gaza Strip, Israeli aircraft struck Hamas positions early Thursday, after Palestinians allegedly fired rockets or mortar rounds at Israel and launched incendiary balloons.