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Israeli police raided the main office of a Palestinian news outlet and print shop in northern Jerusalem late on Monday, (MNA) has reported.

Officers stormed the main building and print house of al-Quds newspaper in the Atarot industrial area, holding employees at gunpoint and checking surveillance footage.

The police officers were reportedly searching for West Bank ID-holders who had allegedly entered Israel illegally.

The raid comes amid increasing efforts by Israeli authorities to crack down on Palestinians entering Israel illegally from the occupied West Bank.

Palestinian media outlets have been frequently targeted by the Israeli authorities since further unrest hit the occupied Palestinian territories in the past six months, with a number of outlets shut down for alleged "incitement against Israel".

Journalists have also been the target of a crack down and arrest campaign.

According to a report by the New York-based Committee to Support Palestinian Journalists, at least 43 Palestinian journalists have been jailed without charge by Israel since October 2015.

The report also said that the detained media workers had been victims of torture, medical negligence, and illegal rulings by the Israeli authorities.

In a statement released in March, Palestinian media freedoms group MADA said it was "highly concerned" by recent Israeli resolutions targeting Palestinian media.

The watchdog also released a report last month showing that 2015 had seen an "unprecedented" increase in Israeli violations against journalists across the occupied Palestinian territories.