RAMALLAH, Palestine/ISTANBUL 

Israeli army forces shot dead a Palestinian man and injured three others near two military checkpoints in the West Bank city of Nablus on Friday, the Health Ministry said.

A ministry statement said Ahmad Shehadeh, 57, from the town of Urif in Nablus, was killed by Israeli gunfire near the military checkpoint of al-Murabba’a.

The Israeli army claimed that Shehadeh threw what it called a “suspicious object” toward its forces in the area, opening fire on him and killing him instantly.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said three people were assaulted and injured by Israeli forces at the military checkpoint of Deir Sharaf, west of Nablus.

Palestinians are frequently subjected to beatings, abuse, and searches while passing through Israeli military checkpoints in the occupied West Bank.

According to the Palestinian Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission (CWRC), there are 898 permanent and temporary Israeli barriers and checkpoints that divide Palestinian lands and impose restrictions on the movement of people and goods. These include more than 156 iron gates installed after October 2023.

The same commission documented around 1,613 violations by the Israeli army and illegal settlers against Palestinians and their property in the West Bank during August, including 431 attacks carried out by settlers.

Since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, settlement expansion, home demolitions, and forced displacement have intensified in the West Bank. Palestinian officials warn such measures undermine the feasibility of a two-state solution.

Since then, at least1,018 Palestinians have been killed and more than 7,000 injured in the West Bank by Israeli forces and illegal settlers, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

In an advisory opinion last July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.