In a tragic incident in the northern West Bank, an Israeli national was shot dead by unknown assailants in the town of Qalqilya, according to the Israeli army. The incident took place on Saturday morning, and Israeli troops are currently operating in the area.

This incident comes after Israeli forces fatally shot two militants in the same West Bank town the previous day. The region has been witnessing increased violence since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war in October last year.

Since the start of the conflict, at least 549 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in the West Bank, as reported by the Palestinian Health Ministry. On the other hand, Palestinians in the West Bank have killed at least nine Israelis, including five soldiers, according to U.N. data.

In a separate incident, the Palestinian Civil Defense in Gaza reported that 19 bodies were pulled from a building hit by an Israeli strike in Gaza City on Saturday. The emergency group is also engaged in search and rescue efforts at another strike site in Shati refugee camp, west of Gaza City. However, the figures provided by the emergency group have not been independently verified by the Associated Press.

The Israeli army confirmed that its fighter jets targeted two Hamas military sites in the Gaza City area. Further details about the strikes were not provided.

Amidst the escalating violence, a member of the military wing of al-Jamaa al-Islamiya, a Sunni Muslim faction closely allied with Hamas, was killed in an Israeli strike in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley. This marks the seventh member of the group killed by Israeli strikes since the war began.

The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas erupted in October, with Hamas militants storming southern Israel, resulting in the deaths of around 1,200 people and the taking of 250 others as hostages. Israel responded by bombarding and invading Gaza, leading to the deaths of more than 37,400 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

It is important to note that Israeli nationals are prohibited from entering Qalqilya and other areas of the West Bank under the control of the Palestinian Authority. In April, the death of a 14-year-old Israeli settler sparked a series of settler attacks on Palestinian towns in the territory, and a Palestinian suspect was later arrested in connection with the killing.

Tensions in the West Bank have been high since 2014 when the abduction and killing of three Israeli teens escalated tensions and ignited a 50-day Israel-Hamas war in Gaza - the deadliest round of fighting between the two sides at the time.

The influence of the Palestinian Authority in the northern West Bank has diminished in recent years as militant groups have gained increasing power.

Additionally, last week, a 12-year-old Palestinian boy succumbed to his wounds after being shot by Israeli forces in Ramallah. The Israeli army stated that their forces had raided al-Amari refugee camp near Ramallah to arrest a suspect when they were attacked by a group of Palestinians throwing stones.

The West Bank, along with the Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem, was captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war, and the Palestinians view these territories as part of their desired independent state.