Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian civilians, European diplomats and a French mayor this Saturday (17) in the occupied West Bank, the Belgian Foreign Minister said. A day earlier, settlers had attacked an American photojournalist.
Maxime Prévot said that among those targeted were the Belgian consul general along with the Palestinians, French and Polish diplomats and Catholic representatives. A Belgian vehicle was also damaged, he said.
"As the occupying power, the Israeli authorities must protect the Palestinians, guarantee the safety of diplomats and journalists and bring those responsible to justice. Impunity for violent settlers must end," declared Prévot in a publication on X.
Bernard Baudoux, mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries, in northern France, told the Reuters news agency that he was harvesting olives near the Palestinian Christian village of Taybeh, in a gesture of solidarity with the local community, when he was "violently attacked" by masked settlers. "I was thrown to the ground," he said.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar condemned the attack and classified those responsible as violent Israeli protesters. He also suggested that diplomats should have coordinated the visit with the Israeli Armed Forces. "This coordination could have helped ensure the safety of visitors," he said in a post on X.
In a statement, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's office urged caution about what happened. Despite saying that the attack on diplomats is serious, the government claims that it needs evidence to verify the accusations, which would not be possible with just the videos released.
"These reports come amid concerns about a coordinated campaign to defame Israel and the Jewish residents of Judea and Samaria during the annual olive harvest, resorting to sensationalist headlines before all the facts come to light," it said in a statement, using the biblical term by which the region is called in Israel. According to the Israeli government, an investigation was opened to investigate the attacks.
Palestinian Vice President Hussein al-Sheikh condemned the attack and called it a small example of the "daily terrorism" to which Palestinians are subjected.
Israeli officials, including Netanyahu, have periodically condemned settler violence but say it is carried out by a small minority. Palestinians and human rights groups dispute this characterization.
Attacks by settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank have increased in the last three years, as have the Netanyahu government expanded Jewish settlements in the region, which are illegal under international law. Journalists, activists and foreign observers have also been targeted.
On Friday (16), dozens of masked settlers attacked Palestinians who were harvesting olives in the West Bank. Heidi Levine, an American photojournalist for the Washington Post who covered the harvest, was hospitalized after being attacked by masked settlers.
“Those who attacked an unarmed reporter should spend years in prison,” Mike Huckabee, US ambassador to Israel, wrote in X this Saturday.
She states that the country requested investigation, arrest and accountability, "under the strictest terms of the law", of all those involved. "Attacking a photographer is a despicable act of terror, committed by masked cowards. A dishonorable act of senseless violence," Huckabee added.
Also on Saturday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said recent scenes of settler violence in the West Bank were "disturbing."
"Palestinians face this violence every day. Settlers also attack journalists who report on these episodes and diplomats. Picking olives, covering events or carrying out diplomatic duties should never put anyone at risk of suffering an attack," said Prévot.
Belgium, which announced a ban on imports from Israeli settlements in the West Bank and the Golan Heights, another territory occupied by Israel, will press for European Union sanctions "against those responsible for this violence and those who support them", the minister added.
Polish Foreign Ministry spokesman Maciej Wewior stated on X that a convoy carrying diplomats, including Polish officials, had been attacked. The Polish diplomats were not injured. "Attacks against members of the diplomatic corps are absolutely unacceptable," he declared.
Israeli police said they had opened an investigation into the episode. Until the publication of this report, no arrests had been announced. Court cases against settlers accused of violent crimes against Palestinians in the West Bank are rare.
