Israeli troops shot dead a Palestinian in a raid in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, the third Palestinian killed in the occupied territory in 24 hours, the health ministry said.

The violence erupted in the Dheisheh refugee camp near Bethlehem, a ministry statement said, identifying the dead as Ayman Muhaisen, 29.

He was the third Palestinian killed in 24 hours after a woman who allegedly approached soldiers with a knife was shot dead early Wednesday, and a man was killed in an Israeli raid in the northern West Bank later during the day.

Israeli security forces have stepped up operations in the West Bank in recent months, carrying out almost daily raids to arrest suspects after a series of deadly attacks inside Israel.

The army said troops entered Dheisheh to arrest a Palestinian “suspected of terrorist activities” and were met with volleys of Molotov cocktails and cement blocks. They responded with live ammunition.

Late Wednesday, Israeli troops mounted an incursion into the village of Yabad outside Jenin to demolish the home of a suspected assailant in a March attack that killed five people in the Tel Aviv suburb of Bnei Brak.

The Ministry of Health said that after this raid, a Palestinian died in a hospital in Jenin. He had been admitted in critical condition, having been “hit by live ammunition in the chest and thigh”.

palestinian news agency Wafa said six Palestinians were injured in the Israeli raid.

The army said it also arrested the “terrorist’s father”. He said he informed the family of the alleged gunman, Diaa Hamarsha, on April 17 of the demolition order against the family home.

Israel regularly destroys the homes of individuals it accuses of attacking Israelis.

This practice, which often fuels tensions, has been condemned by critics as a form of collective punishment. Israel insists it is deterring attacks.

On Wednesday morning, Israeli soldiers in the southern West Bank shot and killed Ghofran Warasnah, 31, near Hebron after she “advanced” towards soldiers with a knife, the army said.

Nineteen people – including 18 inside Israel and a Jewish settler – have been killed in attacks, allegedly by Palestinians and Israeli Arabs, since late March.

Israeli security forces responded with raids inside Israel and in the West Bank, particularly in the northern district of Jenin, a hotspot. Three suspected Arab Israeli assailants and a police commando are dead.

Thirty-eight Palestinians were killed in the West Bank, including one AlJazeera journalist covering a raid in Jenin and passers-by.