JERUSALEM, Dec 17, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Israeli settlers shot dead a 16-year-old Palestinian near Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian official news agency WAFA reported on Tuesday.

Muheeb Ahmed Jibril was killed shortly after the funeral procession for another teenager who was killed on Monday, the agency said, quoting the mayor of Tuqu, where the incident took place.

"As the mourners dispersed, a number of young men remained at the northern entrance to the town. A colonist then got out of his vehicle and opened fire directly at them, killing Jibril and seriously wounding another young man," the agency said.

Contacted by AFP, the Israeli military said that its troops were dispatched to the area "following a report that was received regarding masked terrorists who hurled rocks and paint bottles toward Israeli civilian vehicles that were driving along a main road, posing a significant danger to the passengers".

The army said it "operated to restore order" and was aware that a Palestinian was injured by gunfire and later succumbed to his wounds.

Violence in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967, has soared since the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023 triggered the Gaza war.

It has not ceased despite the delicate truce between Israel and Hamas that came into effect in October.

Israeli troops or settlers have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians, many of them are Hamas men, but also scores of civilians, in the West Bank since the start of the Gaza war, according to an AFP tally based on Palestinian health ministry figures.

At least 44 Israelis, including both soldiers and civilians, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or Israeli military operations, according to official Israeli figures.