Several Palestinians and a veteran American photojournalist were injured Friday when a group of masked Israeli settlers assaulted olive harvesters in the occupied West Bank, according to Palestinian authorities, witnesses, and video recordings.
Near the Palestinian village of Abu Falah, northeast of Ramallah, roughly 20 masked individuals dressed in dark clothing descended from an Israeli settlement outpost into an olive grove. BBC News and CBS News reported that the attackers set fire to approximately a dozen olive trees, torched two vehicles, and fired stones using slingshots, while Palestinians hurled stones back in response.
Among those hurt was Heidi Levine, an American photojournalist on assignment for The Washington Post. Video footage reviewed by the Foreign Press Association showed Levine surrounded by masked assailants, thrown to the ground, and repeatedly beaten as her cameras and equipment were taken, CBS News reported.
Levine was evacuated to a medical center in Ramallah, where she was treated for wounds to her leg and hand, with Palestinian media reporting cuts and possible fractures, according to The Jerusalem Post. Levine recounted that attackers kicked her dozens of times while she was down.
“Luckily I had my flak jacket and helmet, otherwise I probably wouldn’t even be here, because they just kept kicking and kicking me,” Levine told CBS News from her hospital bed.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society reported treating three Palestinians for injuries at Abu Falah, including a man who was shot in the thigh, according to the Palestinian news agency WAFA.
Contested accounts and wider unrest
The Mateh Binyamin Regional Council offered a contrasting narrative of the confrontation, alleging that the Palestinian Authority organized the gathering and directed “hundreds of anarchists and terrorists into a direct confrontation with Israelis,” The Jerusalem Post reported. The council claimed that fireworks and stones were aimed at Israelis while reporters documented the confrontation, though it did not explicitly address Levine’s injuries.
Nationalist-related confrontations were also reported Friday in several other West Bank communities, including Burin, Burqa, and Turmus Ayya, where at least four vehicles were burned, Israeli and Palestinian sources reported. In Beit Ummar, north of Hebron, the Red Crescent reported that a 63-year-old woman and a 40-year-old man were hospitalized after settlers raided Palestinian homes late Thursday night.
United Nations officials stated that settler violence against Palestinians has reached historic highs, with more attacks recorded over the past two weeks than during the entire harvest period last year. Yesh Din, an Israeli rights organization monitoring settlements, documented 486 violent acts against Palestinians over an 18-day span, including 234 related directly to the olive picking season, CBS News reported.
Israel Police announced that an official investigation has begun following an initial military report on the Abu Falah incident, while the Israel Defense Forces stated they are examining the clashes. Separately, the Shin Bet internal security service and police forces conducted a search on Friday for an armed man wearing a military uniform spotted near Kafr Kara, The Jerusalem Post reported.
