Israeli police shot dead a 53-year-old Palestinian man during a raid on Thursday in the West Bank village Beit Omar.

Falah Abu Maria was killed when three live bullets were shot at his chest at close range, according to Yousef Takrouri, the deputy director of al-Ahli Hospital in Hebron, reported AP news agency.

Abu Maria's 22-year-old son Mohammed was shot in the legs while his other son Ahmed received light injuries to the face.

The Palestinian Authority's official news agency WAFA said that Abu Maria was killed while attempting to provide first aid to one of his sons who was injured during the raid.

However, an Israeli military spokesperson said that the police officers conducting the raid had been attacked.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the killings with his spokesperson saying that the killing of Palestinians "aims to create a state of instability and tension in the region," reported WAFA.

The incident triggered an impromptu protest, which led to violent clashes between Palestinians and Israeli authorities.

The Israeli army said it responded to Palestinians hurling rocks and firebombs at troops with "riot dispersal means." No casualties were reported.

The incident comes amid heightened tensions in the Palestinian Territories a year after the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) launched a military campaign in the Gaza Strip, which left more than 1,400 civilians dead, a third of them children.

ls/rc (AP, dpa)