An Israeli tow-truck driver shot and killed two unarmed Palestinians in the occupied West Bank on Sunday, claiming they had tried to steal his vehicle.

A spokesman for Palestinian security forces, Adnan Al-Damiri, said he was aware of the deaths but did not have further details, since the killings took place in an Israeli-controlled area out of bounds to Palestinian police.

An official at the Aboul Hassan Hospital in Yatta near the West Bank town of Hebron said two Palestinian men had suffered fatal gunshot wounds, one to the head and the other to the neck.

An Israeli police spokesman said the driver told investigators he opened fire after the Palestinians had attempted to steal his truck. He was taken to an Israeli hospital for treatment and police said they were continuing to investigate.

Jewish settlers and other Israelis who travel regularly in the Israel-occupied West Bank are licensed to carry guns.