An Israeli occupation soldier points his weapon in the market of the Old City of Nablus in the occupied West Bank on June 23, 2026. (Credit: Jaafar Ashtiyeh/AFP)
Israeli occupation forces fatally shot a Palestinian man in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.
The shooting is the latest fatal incident to occur as Israel's violence surges in the occupied Palestinian territory.
In a statement, the Palestinian Health Ministry announced that Israeli occupation forces shot and killed 32-year-old Mustafa Taha Mustafa al-Khatib "at dawn today in Salfit."
It added that his death brought the number of Palestinians killed by Israel since the beginning of the year to 72, including 17 children, five women, and two elderly people.
When asked by AFP about the incident, the Israeli occupation military said that "during [Israeli occupation] soldiers' operational activity in the area of Sarta, a terrorist threw objects at the soldiers."
A day earlier, Israeli forces killed a Palestinian man during a house raid in a town in the northern West Bank.
Violence has escalated in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967, since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.
Israeli occupation soldiers or settlers have killed at least 1,084 Palestinians since then, per an AFP tally based on Palestinian Health Ministry data, according to which 71 people were killed in 2026.
