ISTANBUL

Palestine condemned on Wednesday the killing of a Palestinian by an Israeli settler in the West Bank as a direct result of incitement by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. 

A 43-year-old man was shot dead by an Israeli settler in the town of Al-Tuwail, south of Nablus on Tuesday, following a settler attack on their property, according to the official news agency Wafa.

“The killing is a translation of incitement by Ben-Gvir, who brags about distributing weapons to the colonists,” the Palestinian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

“This crime reflects an official Israeli disregard for Palestinian lives and for the sanctions imposed by several countries on extremists,” it added.

Ben-Gvir has issued 100,000 gun licenses since the outbreak of the conflict in the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, 2023.

“This week, we reached a milestone at the National Security Ministry: The 100,000th citizen received their firearms license,” Ben-Gvir said on Tuesday.

“In fact, out of 299,354 applications submitted since the war…more than 100,000 citizens have already been approved to arm themselves, because weapons save lives,” he added.

On Monday evening, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the European Union has reached a "political agreement" to sanction extremist Israeli settlers.

Since the start of Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, 2023, Israeli settlers across the occupied West Bank have intensified their assaults against Palestinians and their properties under the watch of Israeli forces.

According to Palestinian figures, about 725,000 settlers live in 176 Jewish-only settlements and 186 outposts in the occupied West Bank.

Under international law, all Jewish settlements in the occupied territories are considered illegal.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio in Istanbul