Israel arrests 10 settlers over attacks on US journalist and European officials in West Bank

Israeli police have arrested 10 settlers on suspicion of involvement in two coordinated attacks against a US photojournalist, European diplomats and Palestinians over the weekend in the occupied West Bank, Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported on Monday. According to the report, the suspects were arrested and taken for questioning in a joint operation involving the police, military and Shin Bet. Israeli forces also said they had confiscated settlers’ vehicles and removed settlers who had invaded a Palestinian village. The unusual arrest of a group of Jewish settlers comes amid mounting international pressure on Israel, with the European Council and the US condemning settler attacks involving their respective citizens. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu questioned the accounts of the incidents, referring to both as “alleged” attacks despite concrete visual evidence. On Friday, in the Palestinian village of Abu Falah, northeast of Ramallah, dozens of Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians harvesting olives. During the attack, Washington Post veteran photojournalist Heidi Levine , 64, was also assaulted. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Levine was knocked to the ground and repeatedly beaten with sticks and kicked by masked settlers, leaving her in need of surgery, according to the Washington Post. "I was attacked, pushed to the ground," Levine told reporters from her hospital bed, adding "luckily I had my flak jacket and helmet, otherwise I probably wouldn't even be here". The incident, which was captured on video, sparked a global outcry, prompting the US to call for a full Israeli investigation into the attack. A day after the settler attack, another incident caused outrage when Israeli settlers targeted a European delegation visiting the Palestinian village of Taybeh, northeast of Ramallah, during the annual olive harvest. "We expect full accountability as well as effective measures to prevent continued acts of violence and violent harassment against Palestinians," an EU spokesperson said after the attack. 'Broad impunity' According to Haaretz, Israeli police gathered evidence linking the suspects to the attacks, adding that they would soon be brought before a court. However, despite a surge in settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Monday that he would not reinstate administrative detention for Jewish settlers, Haaretz reported. 'The settlers are in control': How the West Bank is being ethnically cleansed Read More » During Katz’s tenure as defence minister, the military has been allowed to use administrative detention against Palestinians but not Jewish settlers. Administrative detention is a draconian practice that allows Israeli authorities to hold Palestinians for prolonged periods without charge or trial, often on the basis of alleged secret evidence. Thousands of Palestinians have been subjected to the practice. According to Israeli human rights group B’Tselem, as of June 2026, Israel was holding 3,198 Palestinians in administrative detention. Israeli independent outlet HaMakom reported that half of them had been held for more than a year without charge. A recent report by B'Tselem said that between October 2023 and June 2026, the Israeli military and Jewish settlers killed 1,087 Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, including 242 children and 21 women. The human rights group said Israeli soldiers, police officers and settlers enjoy “broad impunity” for crimes committed against Palestinians, with perpetrators rarely arrested or charged. B’Tselem noted in its report that between 2016 and 2024, some 2,427 complaints were filed against Israeli soldiers over alleged crimes against Palestinians. Investigations were opened in only 22.7 percent of the cases, while indictments were filed in just 0.9 percent of all complaints. Copyright © 2014 - 2026 . Middle East Eye. All rights reserved. Only England and Wales jurisdiction apply in all legal matters. Middle East Eye ISSN 2634-2456