Israeli troops have shot dead two Palestinian youths in the occupied West Bank as confrontations entered a third day following the death of a prisoner in an Israeli jail. The body of Naji Balbisi, 17, a cousin of 16-year-old Amer Nassar who was also shot dead in clash at a military roadblock at Tulkarem in the north of the Palestinian territory, was discovered early on Thursday morning, officials said. The Israeli army said troops fired on Palestinians who threw fire bombs at a guard post in the area after dark on Wednesday, but did not confirm the teenager was killed by them. The army said it was investigating the incident, which left at least one other Palestinian wounded. Tensions have risen rapidly in the West Bank and Gaza Strip following the death from cancer on Tuesday of Maysara Abu Hamdeya, 64, who was serving a life sentence in an Israeli jail. Palestinians accuse Israel of withholding care from the man and failing to release him after diagnosing that his illness was terminal. Israel said it followed normal procedures. Abu Hamdeya was convicted for a planned attack on a Jerusalem cafe in 2002. In the southern West Bank city of Hebron, where Abu Hamdeya is to be buried on Thursday, Israeli forces clashed with dozens of Palestinian protesters on Wednesday, firing tear gas and rubber bullets at men throwing stones and petrol bombs.
