QUSRA, Occupied West Bank: Israeli soldiers shot dead a Palestinian man during a clash between West Bank villagers and Israeli settlers Friday, according to witness and military accounts. The shooting came amid heightened tensions over the Palestinians’ bid to seek U.N. recognition of a state of Palestine.

The deadly clash near the West Bank village of Qusra was witnessed by an AP photographer, who said the confrontation began when Israeli settlers burned and uprooted trees in the area. The Israeli military said settlers and Palestinian villagers threw stones at each other, and confirmed that soldiers at some point started firing live rounds.

The military said soldiers opened fire after villagers threw rocks at them. The army said it was working with Palestinian security officials to investigate.

The victim was identified as Issam Badran, a 35-year-old laborer and father of seven, said a village resident, Mohammad Khalil.

Khalil said he and Badran were in the area of the clash when they heard gunshots and started running away.

He said he heard Badran call out his name as they were running. “I turned around, and he had fallen,” Khalil said outside the morgue of Nablus’ Rafidiyeh Hospital, where the body had been taken. Medics said Badran was shot in the neck.