RAMALLAH, Palestine / ISTANBUL

A Palestinian man was killed Sunday evening by Israeli gunfire in the village of Deir Jarir, east of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, the Health Ministry said.

The official news agency Wafa said, citing Fathi Hamdan, who heads the village council, that a 20-year-old man was shot dead during an attack on the village by illegal armed settlers accompanied by Israeli forces.

Hamdan said illegal settlers attacked residents’ homes as Israeli troops entered the area to protect them.

Both soldiers and illegal settlers opened fire on villagers, striking a Palestinian with live bullets in the chest and causing his death, he added.

The Israeli army has escalated its attacks in the West Bank since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.

A total of 1,080 Palestinians have since been killed and nearly 11,000 others injured in attacks by the army and illegal settlers in the occupied territory. More than 20,000 people have also been arrested.

In a landmark 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.