Jerusalem —
Israeli settlers attacked a group of European diplomats in the occupied West Bank on Saturday, a day after a Washington Post reporter was injured in a separate attack.
According to Israeli media and the Palestinian state news agency Wafa, settlers attacked a group of European diplomats in Taybeh, a Palestinian Christian village east of Ramallah. According to local media, the diplomats were from France, Belgium and Poland.
Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévost condemned the attack, saying it was directly related to Israel’s policies in the West Bank.
“As the occupying power, the Israeli authorities must protect Palestinians, ensure the safety of diplomats and journalists, and bring those responsible to justice,” he said in a statement on X. “Impunity for violent settlers must end.” He said the group also includes representatives of Catholics.
Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the attack in a statement on social media, saying it “hopes that the Israeli authorities will provide an urgent and detailed explanation, identify those responsible and ensure accountability.”
“We are deeply outraged by this incident and condemn it in the strongest possible terms,” the ministry said. “Poland has consistently opposed violence by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank. Attacks on members of the diplomatic corps are completely unacceptable.”
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrault called the attack “outrageous” in a social media post and called on the Israeli government to immediately arrest those responsible.
Video from the scene shows a French official, identified as Ornoye-Emery Mayor Bernard Baudou, sitting on the ground outside a vehicle with a smashed window. Other videos show masked settlers, some armed with clubs and others in all-terrain vehicles, blocking roads and demanding identification.
The video shows Mayor Ornoye Emerys on the ground in the occupied West Bank and settlers blocking a road.
Palestinian Authority Vice President Hussein al-Sheikh called on the international community to hold Israel accountable for the attack. “This is a miniature model of the scale of terror that Palestinians are subjected to on a daily basis, and requires a firm international stance to impose international protection on Palestinians.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said he strongly condemned the “severe acts of violence committed by Israeli mobs.” He said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was in contact with the ambassadors of the countries concerned to assist law enforcement.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said there were no soldiers in the area at the time of the attack and the visit was not coordinated with the military.
“IDF strongly condemns the severe violence that occurred in the Taybe area, during which diplomatic representatives were attacked by Israeli mobs,” the IDF said. Israeli police are investigating.
The settler attack on the diplomat came a day after another incident in which settlers attacked veteran Washington Post reporter Heidi Levine, who was accompanying a group of Palestinians to the start of the annual olive harvest. Levine said she was hospitalized and required surgery after the assault, during which time her camera and passport were stolen. She said the assault lasted about 10 minutes, even though she was wearing a protective vest that clearly marked her as a member of the media.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has repeatedly downplayed settler violence, sought to cast doubt on the attack. He said Israel “unequivocally condemns violence against anyone,” but did not condemn the masked armed settlers seen in the video attacking Levine.
Despite clear and unequivocal condemnation from President Saar and Israeli President Isaac Herzog, who called the attack on the diplomats “outrageous and shocking violence,” Netanyahu again sought to question the veracity of Saturday’s settler violence, with Netanyahu’s office saying in a statement on X that “grave accusations require serious evidence.”
