The Palestinian Health Ministry announced on Friday that Israeli occupation forces (IOF) shot dead a 57-year-old Palestinian man near a checkpoint south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank. The Ministry identified him as Ahmed Abdel-Fattah Shahada, declaring his martyrdom after being struck by occupation bullets.

Zionist soldiers executed #Palestinian Ahmed Abdel-Fattah Shahada at the Al-Murabba military point, south of #Nablus , in the occupied West Bank.
They seized his body and refused to hand him over to the Palestinian Red Crescent.#GazaGenocide #WestBankGenocide #GazaStraved pic.twitter.com/8ogH4KEfao

— JuniorM (@JuniorM26048432) September 5, 2025

Eyewitnesses reported that Israeli soldiers opened direct and heavy fire on Shahada while he was near the checkpoint, seriously wounding him. They then left him bleeding on the ground, preventing anyone from approaching him.

Confirming this, Ahmed Ameed, director of the Red Crescent Ambulance and Emergency Center in Nablus, reported that ambulance teams responded after receiving reports of gunfire near the checkpoint. However, soldiers stationed there prevented the teams from reaching the scene.

The killing took place late Friday at a checkpoint where tensions have frequently erupted amid the escalation of violent Israeli operations in the West Bank.

In a statement, the IOF claimed that a “terrorist” approached the checkpoint and hurled a “suspicious object” toward soldiers. The military alleged that the man ignored orders to stop, prompting soldiers to “eliminate the terrorist in order to remove the threat.”

Palestinian officials, however, rejected this framing, describing the shooting as another example of Israeli aggression targeting civilians in occupied territory.

Read more: Gaza death toll skyrockets past 64,200; medical system crumbles

Escalation of violence in the occupied West Bank

Israeli aggression against residents in the West Bank has sharply increased since the start of the Gaza war nearly two years ago. Checkpoint killings, night raids, and settler violence have become a daily reality for Palestinians.

The Health Ministry in Palestine reported that at least 973 Palestinians have been killed by the IOF or settlers since October 7, 2023.

The killing near Nablus underscores the growing volatility in the West Bank as the Israeli violence continues unabated. Palestinian authorities warn that unchecked Israeli aggression will only fuel further instability across Palestine.

Read more: Palestinian conditions worse than South African apartheid: Mandela