Ramallah, Dec 12 (IANS): A 16-year-old Palestinian girl was killed after Israeli soldiers stormed the northern West Bank city of Jenin, Palestinian medics and eyewitnesses said.

In a statement, the Palestinian Ministry of Health said that the girl, Jana Zakarneh, 16, from the city of Jenin, was killed after seven gunshots fired by Israeli soldiers hit her, Xinhua news agency reported.

Local sources and eyewitnesses said that a special Israeli army force, backed by armored vehicles, stormed the city of Jenin to arrest two Palestinians wanted by Israeli security forces for being involved in carrying out attacks against Israel.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said in a statement that four wounded Palestinians were evacuated to the main hospital in the city.

The eyewitnesses said that dozens of Palestinian shooters clashed with the Israeli soldiers, who arrested the two wanted Palestinians, noting that a heavy exchange of fire occurred with several explosions in the area.

They said that after the Israeli army force pulled out from the city of Jenin, residents found the Palestinian girl dead on the roof of her family's house with seven bullets infiltrating her body.

There has been no immediate comment from Israeli authorities on the girl's death.

According to official Israeli figures, the Israeli army's ground offensives were intensified following a series of attacks carried out by Palestinians, which killed more than 20 Israelis in Israel and the West Bank.

Official Palestinian figures showed that more than 200 Palestinians had been killed since January, including over 50 in the Gaza Strip. Most Palestinians were killed in the northern West Bank cities of Jenin and Nablus.