JERUSALEM: Israeli troops on Saturday drove some 100 Palestinian activists out of an illegal tent camp they had set up near the city of Hebron in the southern West Bank, the military said.

Saturday's operation marked the fifth time in the past month Israeli forces broke up a Palestinian encampment.

The Palestinians aim to draw attention to Israel's control of territory they seek for a future state. In particular, they say they are protesting what they describe as a broad Israeli policy to prevent Palestinians from building in West Bank areas controlled by the Jewish state.

The activists seem to be adopting a tactic of Jewish settlers, who establish communities on contested territory hoping it will remain theirs once structures are built.

The military said soldiers used riot control measures to disperse the crowd.