ISRAELI troops killed 18-year-old Palestinian university student Hadeel al-Hashlamon yesterday at a checkpoint near the centre of Hebron in the occupied West Bank.

“An attack was thwarted when a Palestinian woman attempted to stab an Israeli soldier at a military position in Hebron,” Israel said.

But witnesses denied any attack had taken place and the soldier was unhurt.

Ms Hashlamon was taken to hospital but died in surgery.

Earlier in the day, a Palestinian man died during an Israeli army operation in the city. Israeli sources claimed he died when a makeshift device exploded.

However, Palestinian security officials said 21-year-old Dia al-Talahmeh had been shot dead by Israeli troops in the nearby village of Dura.

Tensions have been running high ahead of Jewish holiday Yom Kippur and the Muslim Eid holiday.

Israel has deployed thousands of police to isolate Jerusalem from the West Bank.