A Palestinian teen was shot dead by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank city of Nablus on Thursday.

“A citizen was killed by the occupation (Israeli) bullets in Nablus,” the Palestinian ministry said in a statement, adding three others were wounded and taken to hospital.

Identity of the Deceased

The statement did not elaborate on the identity of the deceased.

Palestinian news agency Wafa, however, identified the man killed by Israeli fire as 19-year-old Badr al-Masri. It also reported that three others were treated for wounds.

Escorting Israeli Worshippers

The months of fighting with rising fatalities have shown no signs of abating and have become the worst violence by Israel in the occupied West Bank in nearly two decades.

Thursday’s shooting took place as Israeli forces escorted Israeli worshippers, including the Israeli police chief and the head of the local Jewish settler council, to a site known as the biblical Joseph’s Tomb in the Palestinian city of Nablus.

The Israeli army claimed its forces had “operated to secure the coordinated entrance of Israeli civilians to Joseph’s Tomb in the city of Nablus.”

Flashpoint of Clashes

The shrine has long been a flashpoint for clashes between Palestinians and Israeli troops. Nablus has also become a central point of violence in the current escalation.

Protests and Israeli Response

The army regularly escorts Jewish pilgrims to the holy site, an act constantly denounced by Palestinians as a provocation.

According to witnesses, Palestinian protesters burned tires and hurled rocks toward the escorting security forces.

“The forces responded with live fire and riot dispersal means,” an Israeli statement said.

Intensified Violence

Israeli violence against Palestinians in the West Bank intensified early last year when it launched near-nightly raids into the occupied West Bank, in response to a spate of alleged Palestinian attacks against Israelis.

The violence has spiked this year, with more than 150 Palestinians killed by Israeli fire since the start of 2023 in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, according to a tally by The Associated Press.

At least 26 people have been killed in Palestinian attacks against Israelis during that time.

Root Causes

Many Palestinians see the violence as a natural response to 56 years of occupation, including stepped-up settlement construction by Israel’s government and increased violence by Jewish settlers.

Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war, along with the Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem. Palestinians seek those territories for their hoped-for independent state.