Ramallah, Jul 25 (IANS): Three Palestinians were killed on Tuesday by Israeli soldiers in the city of Nablus in the northern West Bank.

The Israeli troops stormed a vehicle and opened fire, Xinhua news agency quoted Palestinian security forces as saying.

The forces also claimed that the soldiers prevented Palestinian ambulances from reaching the vehicle.

An Israeli army spokesman told state media that the troops killed thethree armed Palestinians after they opened fire at an Israeli army checkpoint near the city of Nablus.

According to the spokesman, the three militants arrived at an area near the checkpoint and opened fire from a distance of 100 metres at the soldiers who were stationed there.

Since January, 24 people, most of them Israelis, have been killed in a series of attacks carried out by Palestinians, and about 200 Palestinians, including children and women, were killed by Israeli soldiers and settlers, according to official figures.