Border Police officers stationed at the Qalandiya Crossing opened fire Tuesday morning at two suspects who entered an area designated exclusively for security forces.
The shooting occurred after the two suspects allegedly clashed with the officers and attempted to seize their personal weapons.
It was later determined that the two suspects were employed as civilian security guards. Both sustained light injuries from the gunfire, while several Border Police officers were also lightly injured during the assault.
Police said the circumstances of the incident are under investigation and released the Border Police officers' account of the events.
"A team of Border Police officers from the Judea and Samaria District was traveling in a vehicle to an operational mission when they arrived at a gate near the Qalandiya Crossing designated exclusively for security forces," the statement read. "After passing through, they waited for the gate to close."
"At that point, a civilian vehicle approached from Judea and Samaria and attempted to enter Israeli territory through the gate. The Border Police officers noticed what was happening and identified the vehicle, approached it, and attempted to verify the identities of its occupants.
"At that stage, several suspects exited the vehicle and attacked the officers with punches and chokeholds while attempting to seize their weapons. During the assault, one of the female officers fired a warning shot into the air, but the suspects did not cease attacking the officers. At the same time, another officer saw one of the suspects choking a fellow officer and believed there was an immediate threat to the his life and the lives of his colleagues. He opened fire at the lower bodies of two of the suspects.
"Immediately after the incident, the officer who fired the shots provided initial medical treatment to the wounded until medical teams arrived. It was later determined that the two wounded suspects were employed as security guards, but they were not identifiable as such at the time of the incident," the police statement said.