Palestinian killed by Israeli fire amid West Bank escalation

A Palestinian man was shot dead by Israeli forces in the West Bank on Sunday in the latest escalation in the occupied territory.

An Israeli military statement said the man was killed for allegedly attempting to carry out a car-ramming attack near the illegal Ganim settlement in the northern West Bank.

The army did not disclose the man's identity.

Ganim is an illegal Israeli settlement east of the city of Jenin that was evacuated under Israel's unilateral disengagement plan in 2005, before Israel reopened it in August and allowed occupiers to return.

Israel's public broadcaster earlier said that an occupier was injured in a drive-by shooting near the illegal Nili settlement in the central West Bank.

The escalation comes as the Israeli army has tightened security measures across the West Bank ahead of the start of the Yom Kippur Jewish holiday on Sunday evening.

Palestinians accuse Israel of exploiting the holiday period to intensify its attacks in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and increase incursions into the flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque complex.

The Israeli army and occupiers have escalated attacks against Palestinians and their property since the Gaza war in October 2023, including killing and arresting Palestinians, home demolitions, and expansion of illegal settlements.