In short
- Masked Israeli settlers attacked a delegation of European diplomats in Taybeh, a largely Christian village near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, on Saturday.
- Belgium said a car from its consulate had a window smashed and that a French mayor, Bernard Baudoux of Aulnoye-Aymeries, was assaulted during the attack.
- The delegation included representatives from Belgium, France, Poland and the Catholic Church.
- Israel’s foreign minister, Gideon Sa’ar, condemned violence by what he called “Israeli rioters” but said the visit had not been coordinated with the Israel Defense Forces in advance.
- A day earlier, the Washington Post photographer Heidi Levine and a number of Palestinians were injured in a separate settler assault in another West Bank village.
Masked Israeli settlers attacked a delegation of European diplomats in Taybeh, a largely Christian village near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, on Saturday, smashing the window of a Belgian consulate car and assaulting a French mayor. Belgium condemned the attack and called on Israel to bring those responsible to justice.
What did Belgium say about the attack?
Belgium’s foreign minister, Maxime Prevot, condemned the assault and said Israel, as the occupying power, had a responsibility to protect Palestinians and to ensure the safety of diplomats and journalists. He said Belgium would keep pressing for EU sanctions against those responsible for settler violence “and those who support them”.
“Palestinians face this violence every day. Settlers also target journalists reporting on it and diplomats,” Prevot said. “Impunity for violent settlers must end.”
What have Israeli officials said?
Israel’s foreign minister, Gideon Sa’ar, strongly condemned violence by what he called “Israeli rioters” and said the foreign ministry was in contact with the ambassadors of the countries involved. Sa’ar added that it was “unfortunate” the visit had not been coordinated with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in advance, saying such coordination could have helped safeguard the visitors.
The IDF said it strongly condemned “the severe act of violence” in the Taybeh area and that a preliminary inquiry found no soldiers at the scene when the attack took place. The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged caution before drawing conclusions, saying social media images “do not establish the complete sequence of events or individual responsibility”, and said Israeli police and forensic investigators had opened an investigation. It said the reports came amid what it described as a coordinated campaign to smear Israel and Jewish residents of Judea and Samaria during the annual olive harvest.
Who was injured, and why were the diplomats there?
The delegation drew on representatives from Belgium, France, Poland and the Catholic Church, and had travelled to Taybeh to assess the situation on the ground after near-daily settler attacks on Palestinians trying to bring in the olive harvest. Pope Leo XIV, the head of the Catholic Church, has lung cancer after 90-minute surgery, the Vatican has said.
Belgian authorities said a car from its consulate had a window smashed and that a French mayor was assaulted, and video from the scene showed a man wearing a French tricolour sash slumped beside a vehicle. Netanyahu’s office named the injured official as Bernard Baudoux, the left-wing mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries in northern France. Baudoux told the AFP news agency that settlers kicked him and beat him with iron bars, throwing him to the ground.
“It’s the gratuitous nature of the violence that stuns me,” he said. “They arrived completely enraged.”
What happened the day before?
A day earlier, a number of Palestinians and Heidi Levine, a Washington Post photographer, were injured in a separate assault by settlers in another West Bank village. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the attack on Levine was “disturbing” and “not a good look”. The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, called it a “despicable act of terror carried out by masked cowards” and said the assailants must face “prosecution to the fullest extent of the law”. In a separate case involving reporters, Russia has charged Japanese journalist Yuki Imai with espionage.
Frequently asked questions
What happened to the European diplomats in Taybeh?
Masked Israeli settlers confronted their convoy in Taybeh, a largely Christian village near Ramallah, on Saturday. Belgium said a car from its consulate had a window smashed and that a French mayor travelling with the delegation was assaulted.
Who was the French mayor injured in the West Bank attack?
Benjamin Netanyahu’s office named him as Bernard Baudoux, the left-wing mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries in northern France. Baudoux told AFP that settlers kicked him and beat him with iron bars.
What has Israel said about the attack on the diplomats?
Foreign minister Gideon Sa’ar condemned violence by what he called “Israeli rioters” but said the visit had not been coordinated with the IDF in advance. The IDF condemned the violence and said no soldiers were present, while Netanyahu’s office urged caution before drawing conclusions and said police had opened an investigation.
Why were the diplomats in Taybeh?
The delegation from Belgium, France, Poland and the Catholic Church went to assess the situation after near-daily settler attacks on Palestinians bringing in the olive harvest.
With reporting from BBC News.
Stock image, not from the events described. Globe World — Jo%E3o%20Silas / Wikimedia Commons (CC0 1.0)