Palestinian shot dead after stabbing two Israeli solders in the West Bank

One Israeli was stabbed in the neck and is in hospital in a critical condition

Israeli soldiers on patrol - a Palestinian has been shot and killed after they attacked two Israelis in the West Bank (EPA)

A Palestinian has been shot dead after stabbing and wounding two Israeli soldiers in the occupied West Bank, according to the Israeli army.

An Israeli army spokeswoman said the Palestinian was shot dead by soldiers following the attack.

One of the soldiers was stabbed in the neck on a main road near the Jewish settlement of Maale Levona near Shilo. They were taken to hospital in critical condition.

The other solder was slightly hurt in the incident, the spokesperson said.

“Israeli soldiers shot and killed the terrorist,” they added.

Emergency services in the area told Sky News: “Paramedics are transferring a young man of around 20 to [Jerusalem's] Shaarei Tzedek hospital in serious condition with a stab wound to his upper body," while Palestinian security forces are reported to have sent an ambulance to retrieve the attacker's body.

In December last year an Israeli family in the West Bank we attacked by a man pretending to be a hitchhiker. The man, believed to be Palestinian, threw acid at the family while they were in their car. It came a day after a member of the Palestinian cabinet died following clashes with Israeli troops.

The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank to be illegal. Since the end of the Israel-Gaza conflict last year, which was sparked by a series of retaliatory attacks between Palestinians and Israelis in the West Bank amid growing tensions, the cases of violence in the area have reportedly begun to subside.

Additional reporting by Reuters