A Palestinian man was killed at dawn on Thursday in the occupied West Bank when Israeli occupation forces invaded the village of Sarta, west of Salfit in the central West Bank, detonated the front door of his home, and shot him while he was sleeping after returning from work.
Local sources told WAFA News Agency that the slain man, identified as 32‑year‑old Mustafa Taha Mustafa Al‑Khatib, was killed after Israeli soldiers detonated the door, broke into his house, and opened fire directly at him.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said its crews received a call at around 4 a.m. reporting an injury in the village. An ambulance was dispatched immediately, but Israeli soldiers prevented the medics from reaching the property for nearly 90 minutes before informing them that Al‑Khatib had already died.
According to the Red Crescent, its team received the body about an hour after being allowed access and transferred it to the Yasser Arafat Governmental Hospital in Salfit.
Medical staff reported that Al‑Khatib had been shot multiple times at close range, including four bullets to the heart, one to the shoulder, one to the neck, and another to the elbow.
Mohammad Al‑Khatib, a relative of the slain man, told WAFA that the killing occurred during an Israeli military invasion of Sarta that included breaking into several Palestinian homes. He added that the soldiers ransacked Mustafa’s property during the invasion.
Mustafa had been living alone in a house located near one of the illegal colonial outposts built on the village’s land. He had previously lived in Jordan for several years before returning to settle in Sarta.
Israeli occupation forces continue to carry out repeated invasions across towns and villages in Salfit in the central West Bank, routinely accompanied by breaking into homes and assaults against residents.
With the killing of Al‑Khatib, the number of Palestinians shot dead by Israeli occupation forces and illegal paramilitary colonizers since the beginning of the year has risen to 72, including 17 children, five women, and two elderly Palestinians.
Israel has now killed 1,177 Palestinians, including 246 children, 28 women, two journalists, and two medics in the occupied West Bank since October 7, 2023, and continues to withhold the bodies of 318 slain Palestinians from their families.
315 Palestinians were killed in Jenin governorate, 215 in Tulkarem, 151 in Nablus, 124 in Hebron, 103 in Tubas, 96 in Ramallah, 68 in occupied Jerusalem, 44 in Qalqilia, 37 in Bethlehem, 15 in Jericho, and 9 in Salfit.
