Two Palestinians were shot dead on Monday April 15 in the northern occupied West Bank after clashes with Israeli settlers, the Palestinian Authority Health Ministry said. The Israeli army reported, in a statement, “a violent exchange between Israeli civilians and Palestinians” in the area.
Since the start of the war in the Gaza Strip, triggered by the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, violence has intensified in the West Bank. At least 468 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli soldiers or settlers since the start-of-the war, according to the Palestinian authority. The death this weekend of an Israeli teenager provoked major reprisals from settlers who attacked villages, burned Palestinian homes and cars over the weekend, killing at least at least two people. The mayor of Khirbet al-Tawil blamed an attack by Israeli settlers while the Israeli army suggested that one of its soldiers was behind the fatal shot. On March 19, a Palestinian was killed in front of his home in Khir Betal, a commune located about fifteen kilometers south- east of Nablus.