A diplomatic visit in the occupied West Bank turned violent when Israeli settlers confronted European officials, prompting Israel’s foreign minister to issue an unusually sharp condemnation while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office questioned the reports.
Netanyahu’s office described the coverage as part of a “smear” campaign against settlers.
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“These reports come amid concerns about a coordinated campaign to smear Israel and the Jewish residents of Judea and Samaria during the annual olive harvest, relying on sensational headlines before the full facts emerge,” it said in a statement, referring to the West Bank by its biblical name.
Foreign Minister Gideon Saar had earlier denounced the assault by Israeli “rioters” on the European diplomatic delegation, marking a rare public criticism of settlers from Mr Netanyahu’s right-wing government.
“I strongly condemn the severe acts of violence by Israeli rioters in the area of Taybeh,” Mr Saar said, while also criticising the diplomats for failing to coordinate their visit with the Israeli military.
Diplomats from the French, Belgian and Polish missions travelled by car to Taybeh, a predominantly Christian village in the occupied West Bank. Witnesses said settlers arrived as Palestinians were preparing to collect olives and moved to block the harvest.
Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Saar made a rare critical statement of settlers
Witnesses and diplomats said masked settlers confronted the delegation aggressively before kicking Bernard Baudoux, 78, the leftist mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries, a town in northern France. They confirmed his identity.
Footage showed Mr Baudoux, wearing a sash in the colours of the French flag, sitting on the ground with his back against a car.
Two people who spoke with him said he had been injured but did not require hospital treatment.
This year’s olive harvest has been marked by particularly severe violence in the West Bank, where Israeli settlers have sought to prevent Palestinians from reaching and collecting their crops.
Yesterday, settlers seriously injured an American photographer working for The Washington Post as she reported on the harvest. An AFP photographer was also beaten by settlers last week.
The incidents have unfolded in the closing days of an election campaign in which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has strongly backed settlers while seeking their support in the upcoming poll.
Israel swiftly condemned the assault on the diplomatic convoy. That response contrasted with Mr Netanyahu’s reaction to the attack on the Washington Post photographer, when he suggested that Palestinians or “far-left” activists might also have been responsible.
American photojournalist for The Washington Post Heidi Levine receives medical treatment in hospital
“I strongly condemn the severe acts of violence by Israeli rioters,” Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said.
Mr Saar nevertheless faulted the consulates for failing to coordinate the journey with the military.Israeli police said they had opened an investigation.
“Efforts are underway to locate the victims, collect testimonies, and identify the suspects, with the aim of bringing them to justice,” police said in a statement.
