Palestinian killed by Israeli forces

BEIJING, June 09 (AFP): Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas will make a state visit to China next week, Beijing said Friday, after China expressed readiness to help facilitate Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
Beijing has positioned itself as a mediator in the Middle East, brokering the restoration of ties in March between Iran and Saudi Arabia-rivals in a region where the United States has for decades been the main powerbroker.
"At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, president of the state of Palestine Mahmud Abbas will pay a state visit to China from June 13 to 16," foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said Friday.
"He is the first Arab head of state received by China this year, fully embodying the high level of China-Palestine good relations, which have traditionally been friendly," ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a regular briefing later.
Abbas is an "old and good friend of the Chinese people", he added.
"China has always firmly supported the just cause of the Palestinian people to restore their legitimate national rights."
An Arab News adds: Israeli forces on Friday killed a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry and the army said, with the latter adding that a soldier was lightly wounded.
Mehdi Bayadsa, 29, was killed by "bullets from the occupation (Israel) near the Rantis military checkpoint, west of Ramallah," the ministry said in a statement.
The military in a statement said it had "neutralized" a Palestinian who had arrived near the crossing point between the West Bank and Israel in a stolen vehicle.
"While IDF (Israeli army) soldiers inspected his vehicle, the suspect attacked an IDF soldier and attempted to steal his weapon," the army said, adding a "lightly injured" soldier was taken to hospital.
"Following the confrontation, another soldier in the area shot live fire toward the suspect and neutralised him," the army said, adding that it was "investigating the incident."