Palestinian boy, 4, sustains pepper spray burns to face after Israeli settler attack in West Bank

A young Palestinian child sustained pepper-spray burns after an attack by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank on Friday.

Usayyed Khaled Al-Hadar, 4, was wounded in an attack that took place in Masafer Yatta, an area threatened with expulsion by Israeli authorities in Hebron province.

Settlers pursued shepherds and sprayed Al-Hadar, leaving him with facial burns, Susiya village council chief Jihad Nawajaa was cited as saying by the official Palestinian news agency Wafa.

The boy was taken to hospital, according to Nawajaa, who said the settlers attacked Al-Hadar's father and prevented him grazing his animals on his land in a bid to lay the ground for the expansion of a nearby settlement.

Settlements breach international law and are viewed as a key barrier to a workable two-state solution since they carve up Palestinian land.

There are more than 700,000 settlers residing illegally in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

Friday's attack comes amid a period of increased violence against Palestinians, including by Israeli forces.

Earlier this month, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said Israeli forces had killed 178 Palestinians in the West Bank and Israeli since the start of the year.

"This already exceeds the death toll by Israeli forces in the West Bank of any whole year since 2005," OCHA added.