Israeli authorities are currently holding 17 Palestinian journalists in custody, a Palestinian NGO said on Tuesday.

The Palestinian Radio and TV Corporation said that Israeli forces detained a journalist in the West Bank city of Bethlehem on March 16, bringing the total number of Palestinian press personnel held in Israeli prisons to 17.

"The number of journalists detained by Israeli occupation forces is on the rise, following the recent arrest of Islam Salem, who works as a correspondent for the Bethlehem news network," the organization said.

"Palestinian journalists and media outlets require legal protection from frequent Israeli aggression," it added.

The NGO also called on Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas to intervene for the release of journalists held by Palestinian security authorities in Bethlehem.

It also voiced its rejection of "political arrests of journalists" by Palestinian security bodies.

Earlier this month, the Ramallah-based Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms said that 2014 had been the "worst, bloodiest year" for journalists in Palestine.

The NGO said that the Israeli occupation had committed "351 violations-some amounting to crimes-against journalists in 2014."

It said that 17 journalists and other media personnel had been killed during Israel's war on the Gaza Strip last summer.

It added that Palestinian security agencies had committed 141 violations against journalists in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip during the past year, 90 of which had been in the West Bank.

Israeli and Palestinian officials were not immediately available to comment on the report.

In July and August of 2014, more than 2,160 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were killed and some 11,000 injured - mostly civilians - during a 51-day Israeli military onslaught

The offensive finally ended on August 26 with a cease-fire signed in Cairo between Israel and Palestinian resistance factions.

Over 7,000 Palestinians are currently languishing in Israeli prisons, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Prisoners' Affairs.