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SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean military authorities on Sunday surrounded a soldier who fled his North Korea border outpost after killing five comrades and were trying to persuade him to surrender, a defense official said Sunday.

One platoon leader was wounded when the runaway soldier, identified only by his surname Yim, fired on the military personnel closing in on him, according to a defense ministry official who asked not to be named, citing department rules. The official said troops fired back. It wasn't clear how officers were communicating with Yim.

Yim opened fire Saturday night with his standard issue K2 assault rifle at an outpost near the North Korean border in Gangwon province, east of Seoul, killing five fellow soldiers and wounding seven others, the military said.

Villagers in a nearby area were warned not to leave their houses. The village head, Jang Seok-kwon, said that he heard gunshots ring out about 10 times.

Yim, who was scheduled to be discharged from the military in September, fled with his weapon, but it wasn't clear how much live ammunition he had.

A Defense Ministry official confirmed Yim was considered a "protected and watched-on soldier," which means he needed special attention among servicemen. According to the official, the South Korean military assigns such status based on servicemen's periodical personality test.

Yim was designated a grade A protected soldier in April last year — one with a high risk of suicide attempt or inducing other accidents who could not serve at heavily guarded outposts — then improved to grade B status last November. It means he was being watched with focused attention, but could serve at the outposts at the commander's discretion.

Thousands of troops from the rival Koreas are squared off along the world's most heavily armed border.

There was no indication that North Korea was involved. But tensions between the two countries have been high recently, with North Korea staging a series of missile and artillery drills and threatening South Korea's leader. The Koreas have also traded fire along their disputed maritime border in the Yellow Sea. South Korea has repeatedly vowed to respond with strength if provoked by the North.

Shootings happen occasionally at the border.

In 2011, a 19-year-old marine corporal went on a shooting rampage at a Gwanghwa Island base, just south of the maritime border with North Korea. Military investigators later said that corporal was angry about being shunned and slighted and showed signs of mental illness before the shooting.

In 2005, a soldier tossed a hand grenade and opened fire at a front-line army unit in a rampage that killed eight colleagues and injured several others. Pfc. Kim Dong-min told investigators he was enraged at superiors who verbally abused him.

All able-bodied South Korean men must serve about two years in the military under a conscription system aimed at countering aggression from North Korea.

The Korean Peninsula is still technically in a state of war as the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 U.S. soldiers are stationed in South Korea as a deterrent against North Korean aggression.

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — Israeli troops shot dead a mentally ill Palestinian during a raid in a West Bank refugee camp early Sunday, the army said, while another Palestinian was killed in unclear circumstances during a night of violent confrontations in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

In Ramallah, stone-throwers clashed separately with Israeli troops and Palestinian police, and witnesses said both security forces responded with live fire.

Sunday's deaths brought to four the number of Palestinians killed since Israel launched its most extensive military operation in the West Bank in years in response to the apparent abduction of three Israeli teens on June 12.

As part of the crackdown, Israel has been trying to dismantle the Islamic militant Hamas in the West Bank, which it has blamed for the kidnapping, without providing proof.

Increasingly, Israeli troops raiding towns and refugee camps at night have been met by crowds of Palestinians throwing stones at them. There have also been signs of growing anger among Palestinians at President Mahmoud Abbas, who has defended his decision to continue security coordination with Israeli troops in finding the teens.

In the Al-Ein refugee camp in the northern West Bank, 27-year-old Ahmed Saoud was killed by Israeli troops as he walked to a local mosque for dawn prayers Sunday, said his father, Assad. The elder Saoud said his son suffered from mental illness.

The army said a Palestinian man approached soldiers in a threatening manner early Sunday, and that they fired warning shots before shooting him. The army said an "initial inquiry" suggested the man was mentally unstable.

The Israeli army raid in Ramallah began at around 2 a.m. Sunday, said witness Issam Rimawi, a photographer for a local newspaper.

Several hundred Palestinians threw stones and flower pots at soldiers who were searching offices in two downtown commercial buildings, said Rimawi. He said troops fired live rounds and rubber-coated steel pellets.

After the soldiers withdrew, several dozen protesters hurled stones at a nearby Palestinian police station, said Rimawi and a protester, who spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid repercussions from the authorities.

Both said protesters smashed windows of cars parked outside the station, and that police responded with live fire.

After the clash, the body of Mohammed Ismail, 31, was found on a rooftop opposite the police station, the two witnesses said.

Ahmed Bitawi, the director at Ramallah Hospital, said Ismail was killed with live bullets, but that he did not know whether he was killed by Israeli or Palestinian troops.

The witnesses noted that some of the clashes with Israeli soldiers had also taken place near the police station.

On Sunday, several dozen people marched in downtown Ramallah to protest Israeli-Palestinian security coordination.

"Why, why security coordination? We get hit once by the Palestinian Authority and once by the Israeli army," they chanted.

The Israeli teens went missing as they were returning home from a Jewish religious school in the West Bank.

Since then, Israel has arrested more than 350 Palestinians, most of them affiliated with Hamas, and raided some 1,600 sites in the West Bank.

The army said it arrested six Palestinians overnight Sunday, raided six sites affiliated with Hamas civilian institutions and confiscated funds from 42 sites it said were connected to militant activity.

In the Gaza Strip, Israel carried out airstrikes on four militant sites following rocket fire from Gaza into Israel, the army said. Also Sunday, a Palestinian armed with a hand grenade was caught near an Israeli town near the Gaza border, apparently after he broke through the border fence, the army said.

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Daniel Estrin in Jerusalem contributed to this story.

BELFAST, Northern Ireland (AP) — Giants, dragons and vengeful queens have for generations populated Northern Ireland's folk tales. Now, such creatures are visiting the land in a different version — on the sets for the hit TV show "Game of Thrones." But rather than spells and destruction, they're bringing an economic boost to this British province still healing from its past of political violence.

Fans of the HBO fantasy drama would recognize here the landscapes from the fictional land of Westeros — the castle of Winterfell, the seaside cliffs of the Iron Isles and the King's Road leading to the north. About 75 percent of the show is filmed in Northern Ireland, both in natural settings and in the Titanic Studios in Belfast.

Since the pilot episode began filming in 2009, attracted by the local government's financial incentives, the show's presence has helped foster a film industry that is catching the eye of other Hollywood productions. And Northern Ireland is taking advantage of the attention by promoting the filming locations as tourist destinations.

The latest — and perhaps most illustrious — visitor is Queen Elizabeth II, who will tour the studio sets on Monday. But thousands have already been visiting from across the globe.

Cara and Tom Collins from Springdale, Arkansas, were in Ballintoy Harbour recently to see the rocky coastal setting used in the show for the 'Iron Isles,' a kingdom of rugged sailors.

"You can just close your eyes and picture everybody there," said Tom.

The season four finale of "Game of Thrones" last week was watched by 7.09 million viewers in the United States according to prime-time viewership numbers complied by the Nielson Co. That makes it HBO's most-watched program since "The Sopranos" in 2007.

But the numbers are likely higher since TV audience habits have changed since 2007 and "Game of Thrones" has fans globally who watch on local networks and via DVD or streaming services.

For Northern Ireland's tourism industry, that represents a huge pool of potential visitors. The province hopes to use the show's popularity to increase the number of tourists to over 2 million annually by 2016, from 1.8 million in 2013 — more than the region's population of just 1.8 million.

Coach operators have created "Game of Thrones" tours, for which demand hit a record as the show reached its season finale this month.

"They are using some of our most iconic scenery in 'Game of Thrones' which is excellent," said Arlene Foster, minister for enterprise, trade and investment.

Beyond tourism, the direct employment of local workers has been very important for the local economy, she said.

At the end of series four, HBO is estimated to have spent about 87.6 million pounds ($149.11 million) in the local economy making the show. The benefits are likely much higher when including other factors, such as the knock-on benefits from higher employment.

"This is a sector that we think has the potential to really grow" said Foster. "Around the HBO facility and studios will grow a skills base that others can use."

Holywood — pronounced the same as California's 'Hollywood' — is a small seaside town near Belfast that may lack the glamour of Beverly Hills, but is gaining a movie-making reputation of its own. Yellow Moon, a production facility based there, has enjoyed strong growth and doubled its workforce by being involved with "Game of Thrones."

"HBO were a big catalyst in changing perceptions of what could be done in Northern Ireland. As the Americans say, it was a game changer," said Managing Director Greg Darby.

Five years ago, 80 percent of Yellow Moon's work was for local broadcasters, and just 20 percent for productions based in the U.K. or further afield. Now, 70 percent of their work is commissioned outside Northern Ireland.

"'Game of Thrones' are directly or indirectly responsible for 80 percent of the people that we have taken on in the last three years, because if they didn't come we wouldn't have the other work," said Darby.

Scott Ferguson's story illustrates what "Game of Thrones" means for young creative people in Northern Ireland.

He dreamt of being a film editor, but his first experience in the industry failed to lead to more work, so he took a job in a bank. Then five years ago a government training scheme lead to a placement at Yellow Moon and he is now a colorist on the show, adding mood and tone to the images in post-production, and on his way to becoming an expert in his field.

Ferguson is confident that people like him will no longer need to emigrate to seek work in film and TV, now that Northern Ireland's reputation as a production hub is growing.

"We have world class facilities, and we now have a world class crew. We have a shooting crew and we have a post crew who have worked on the biggest, most watched, most successful TV show that has been around for a while," he said.

Statistics can't do justice to the "Game of Thrones" effect on Northern Ireland's economy, said economist Graham Brownlow, from Queens University Belfast. He says the show is helping to improve the province's international image, which for decades had become synonymous with political violence and economic stagnation.

"The real benefits that Northern Ireland secures are the things that are most difficult to measure" he explained. "By creating a critical mass for film and TV productions it creates a good image for Northern Ireland, which stimulates further production in Northern Ireland, which improves the image of Northern Ireland," Brownlow said.

That 'critical mass' now includes 'Dracula Untold', a Universal Pictures movie with an October 2014 release date and Ridley Scott's new 'Halo' feature, which is also expected to be released before the end of the year.

These and other features will need best boys, wardrobe assistants, carpenters, camera operators and colorists and Northern Ireland's new local talent pool will be only too happy to oblige.