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Photo: Israeli forces fire tear gas towards Palestinian protesters on May 16, 2015 next to Huwarra checkpoint, south of the West Bank city of Nablus. (AFP/Jaafar Ashtiyeh, File)

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NABLUS (Ma'an) -- A Palestinian was shot and killed by Israeli forces during clashes in the town of Beit Furik in Nablus on Friday evening, Palestinian officials said.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health confirmed to Ma'an that Jihad Hanani, 19, was shot dead. Hanani was the fifth Palestinian to die in the occupied Palestinian territory today.

Yahiya Abd al-Qader Farhat, 24, died after being shot in the head by Israeli soldiers in northern Gaza, and Mahmoud Hatim Hmeid, 22, was killed east of the al-Shujaiyeh neighborhood, according to Gaza's ministry of health.

Separately, Eyad Khalil Awawdeh, 26, was shot dead after stabbing an Israeli soldier in the illegal Kiryat Arba settlement in Hebron.
Earlier, Shawiq Jamal Jabr, 37, died from wounds sustained during a demonstration in the Gaza Strip last week.

Tensions have escalated across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem since the beginning of the month, with clashes between Palestinians and Israeli forces erupting daily, which have resulted in more than 1,000 Palestinian injuries, according to the Red Crescent.
At least 37 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since Oct. 1 in the occupied Palestinian territory, at least 18 of whom have died during or after clashes.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has blamed the recent escalation on Palestinian incitement.

PLO secretary-general Saeb Erekat on Thursday said that the PM's accusations "do not change the fact that Israel, the occupying power, is the root-cause of what is going on today...Israeli violence is a daily fact that all Palestinians have to endure."