WaPo Journalist, European Diplomats Assaulted by Settlers in West Bank

Israeli police arrested 10 on Monday in the West Bank after Israeli settlers reportedly beat Palestinians, European diplomats, and an American Washington Post (Lean Left bias) photojournalist.

The Attacks: On Friday, according to The Post, "dozens of masked Israeli settlers" attacked Palestinians who were harvesting their olives. Jasper Nathaniel, a journalist reporting from the West Bank, reported the attack and shared videos. In one, Post journalist Heidi Levine is seen hurt on the ground in a vest that says "PRESS." BBC News (Center) said some of its staff witnessed the attack. Diplomats from Belgium, France, Poland, and the Catholic Church were also reportedly attacked while visiting the small Christian-majority village of Taybeh.

Israeli Statements: Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar condemned the violence by "Israeli rioters" and said, "Without detracting from the severity of the incident, it is unfortunate that the visit was not coordinated with the IDF in advance. Such coordination could have helped safeguard the visitors' security." Prime Minister Netanyahu's office initially said on Oct. 16, "Israel unequivocally condemns violence against anyone – Jews, Arabs, Christians or journalists. Those responsible will be held accountable. But serious questions remain. Reports indicate some 200 Arabs and far-left activists confronted approximately 40 Israeli youths. Footage shows masked individuals on both sides hurling objects, amid reports of fireworks fired at Jewish youths. Other footage appears to show Levine knocked down and immediately helped to her feet by the same unidentified individual." A day later, it offered a summary of reported facts, but urged "caution before drawing conclusions."

US Statement: Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, "We're very disturbed by those images and what we're seeing. We've asked the Israelis, and continue to ask them, to crack down on that stuff."

Political Context: Israel will hold parliamentary elections next week, on Oct. 27. Recent polls have shown a tight race between Netanyahu's ruling bloc and the opposition coalition led by Gadi Eisenkot.

How The Media Covered It: The story was widely and prominently covered by outlets from the left and center, but scantily by outlets on the right. BBC prominently noted that according to the United Nations, settler violence in the West Bank is currently at an all-time high. The Washington Post included that the attack came 10 days after settlers in the West Bank beat AFP photographer Jaafar Ashtiyeh. On the right, AllSides only found coverage from The Daily Caller (Lean Right) and RT (Lean Right), which published four pieces of coverage. The Daily Caller ran a charged headline and did not include any statements or information from the Israeli government. On the same day of the attack, CBN (Right) ran a report in which it had interviewed a West Bank rabbi who said Western media outlets often distort the narrative surrounding settler violence.

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