Israeli Settlers Attack European Diplomats During West Bank Olive Harvest

On October 17–18, 2026, a group of masked Israeli settlers attacked a diplomatic delegation visiting Palestinian olive harvesters near the Christian village of Taybeh in the occupied West Bank. Targets included Belgium's consul general to the Palestinians, French and Polish diplomats, and Catholic representatives accompanying them. Bernard Baudoux, the 78-year-old mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries in northern France, was beaten with metal bars and thrown to the ground. A Belgian diplomatic vehicle was also damaged. The attack came one day after American Washington Post photographer Heidi Levine was seriously hospitalised after a separate settler assault north of Ramallah, as at least four people had been killed and more than 100 injured since the annual olive harvest season began. Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot condemned the attack in the strongest terms, blaming Israel's illegal settlement policy and announcing plans to push for EU sanctions. France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot demanded Israel arrest the perpetrators, while Poland called any attack on diplomats absolutely unacceptable. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar described the attackers as Israeli rioters and suggested the delegation should have coordinated with the military. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged Israel to crack down on settler violence. Palestinian Vice-President Hussein al-Sheikh called it a reflection of the daily terrorism Palestinians face. Israeli police opened an investigation with no immediate arrests. The incident occurred fewer than ten days before Israeli general elections on October 27 in which Prime Minister Netanyahu's government faces a tight race, drawing renewed international focus on settler impunity in the occupied West Bank.