OMM Newsroom
Dozens of masked Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian farmers during the annual olive harvest near the village of Abu Falah in the occupied West Bank, injuring 12 Palestinians and American journalist Heidi Levine, the BBC reported.
A local official said four of the Palestinians injured were dual Palestinian-American citizens. The attackers also set fire to cars and olive trees, according to accounts from the scene.
Majdi Fheed, an American citizen, said he was struck on the head and neck while harvesting olives. Yaser AlKam, a council member from nearby Turmus Aya, said settlers hit Fheed with nail-studded sticks, leaving deep wounds. Fheed’s elderly mother was also injured.
A farmer taking injured people to hospital said attackers used sticks and burned three cars, including his own. A woman at the scene said the farmers fled after settlers arrived shortly after they had reached the land.
A US State Department spokesperson said the department was aware of reports of the violence and condemned criminal violence by any party in the West Bank, calling for investigations, arrests and convictions.
Heidi Levine, a journalist for “The Washington Post”, said dozens of settlers attacked her while she was reporting. She said they knocked her down and kicked her as she tried to hold on to her camera and bag. Her helmet and flak jacket offered protection, she said.
“The Washington Post” executive editor Matt Murray said Levine had been clearly identifiable as a journalist and called for a thorough investigation.
The Israel Defense Forces said troops had been sent to the area after a report of a violent confrontation. It said a female journalist was injured and that all circumstances surrounding the incident would be examined.
Farmers had gathered from three villages to harvest the olives together, landowner Amin Khalil said, describing the arrangement as a way to reduce the risk of attack. He said his land was surrounded by seven Israeli settlements and outposts.
As the confrontation escalated, settlers moved down from a nearby hill and set fire to groups of olive trees, the BBC team reported. Farmers retreated as stones were thrown by people on both sides. Israeli forces later fired tear gas into the fields; it was unclear who had fired live ammunition heard earlier.
The United Nations says attacks by violent Israeli settlers in the past two weeks have already exceeded the total recorded during last year’s olive harvest. It says the attacks this year have killed one Palestinian and injured more than 120 across the West Bank.
Israeli settlements are illegal under international law. Outposts are also illegal under Israeli law, although many receive state support, the BBC reported.
