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Israeli forces shot dead a Palestinian near the occupied West Bank city of Hebron Thursday, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Sharif Hassan Rabaa, 22, "succumbed to critical wounds, which he sustained by bullets from the occupation (Israel), near the entrance to Fawwar" refugee camp, the health ministry said in a statement.

تَزّف فلسطين الشهيد شريف حسن رباع 22 عاماً ، ارتقى متأثراً بإصابته برصاص الإحتلال قُرب مخيم الفوار 'الخليل.

مع السلامة يا مِسك فايح.

— Raghad🇵🇸 (@raghadm48)

The Israeli army claimed that he had "attempted to stab one of the soldiers" near Fawwar, in the south of the occupied West Bank.

Since the start of the year, 43 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces. Six Israelis and one Ukrainian civilian have been killed over the same period.

The surge in violence has prompted a number of international calls for calm, including from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during a visit to the region last month.

Israel has occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem in violation of international law since the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, refusing to withdraw or allow the establishment of a viable Palestinian state.

It has built hundreds of illegal settlements in the Palestinian territory.