A Palestinian tried to stab Israeli soldiers on Friday at a checkpoint near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank and was shot dead, the army said. The army "thwarted the attack, firing towards the assailant, resulting in his death", it said in a statement. The Palestinian health ministry identified the attacker as 17-year-old Mahmud Shaalan. Palestinian security sources said the teenager from Deir Dibwan village north-east of Ramallah held both Palestinian and US nationality.