Israel kill 15th Palestinian in 2023 after man shot dead near Hebron

Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian man in the West Bank on Tuesday, amid a massive crackdown on Palestinians in the occupied territories.

The Palestinian health ministry said the 40-year-old man, identified as Hamdi Shaker Abdullah Abu Dayyah, was shot and killed by Israeli forces in Halhul, north of the West Bank city of Hebron.

Israeli soldiers opened fire at Abu Dayyah, critically injuring him and preventing Palestinian ambulances from reaching the man, whose body is now being held by the army, according to WAFA news agency.

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade - an armed militia affiliated with Fatah, which controls the Palestinian Authority - claimed the man was a fighter and said he had also been a police officer.

The Israeli military said in a statement that troops in the area were fired upon and returned fire and said it was investigating reports that the suspect was connected to an earlier shooting attack on an Israeli bus near a West Bank settlement.

Israel's military has conducted near-daily fatal raids in the occupied West Bank with 15 Palestinians killed so far this year, including a 14-year-old boy on Monday.

Nearly 150 Palestinians were shot dead in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem in 2022, according to figures by the Israeli rights group B'Tselem, making it the deadliest year since 2004.

This includes Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh,  who was shot in the head during an Israeli raid in Jenin despite clearly being identifiable as press. Palestinians say was assassinated.

Palestinians fear an even harsher use of force by Israeli forces in the occupied territories, following the formation of a far-right government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.