The Israel Defense Forces said Thursday that troops had shot dead two Palestinians who were “on their way to carry out a terror attack” near the West Bank settlement of Karmei Zur.

The pair was shot dead by soldiers of the 636th Combat Intelligence Collection Unit, who were waiting in an ambush in the area.

The Palestinian Authority said the two were 15 years old.

The Ramallah-based Palestinian health ministry announced without further details “the martyrdom of Bilal Bahaa Ali Baaran (15 years old) and Muhammad Mahmud Abu Ayash (15 years old), killed by bullets from the occupation this afternoon, Thursday, near Beit Omar, north of Hebron.”

Responding to the reports of their ages, the IDF on Friday said that the two were armed with Molotov cocktails that they intended to throw at the settlement.

“The truth lies in the Molotov cocktails these two ‘innocent’ individuals — the terrorists — were carrying as they sought to carry out a terrorist attack........

© The Times of Israel