Israeli military: 2 Palestinians stab soldiers, shot dead

Israeli soldiers shot dead two Palestinians who had stabbed a soldier Sunday at a West Bank checkpoint, the military said.

The military said the pair of attackers stabbed the soldier at a gas station near the Hawara crossing, south of Nablus. The soldier was moderately wounded. Forces on the scene opened fire and killed both assailants. Another Israeli soldier was accidentally shot and lightly wounded.

The attack was the second of the day, following the stabbing of a soldier in Jerusalem. Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said a 30-year-old attacker stabbed a soldier near the central bus station in Jerusalem and lightly wounded him. A nearby security guard apprehended the attacker who was then taken into police custody. Another two would-be attackers were shot dead Saturday.

The incidents are the latest in three months of unrelenting violence. Since mid-September, 20 Israelis have been killed in attacks. At least 129 Palestinians have died in the same period, of whom 89 Israel says were attacking or attempting to attack Israelis.

Israel says the unrelenting violence is fanned by a Palestinian campaign of lies and incitement. The Palestinians say it is rooted in frustrations stemming from nearly five decades of Israeli occupation.