Israel Police Commissioner Danny Levy said the law in the West Bank "applies to everyone, regardless of identity or affiliation," adding that "a distinction must be made between responsibility for preventing incidents on the ground and responsibility for investigating and enforcing the law after they occur." The raids followed international condemnation from the European Union, France, Belgium and Canada after seven masked settlers on all-terrain vehicles surrounded a diplomatic convoy from France, Belgium and Poland during the olive harvest near Taybeh on Saturday, smashing a Belgian consular car window and beating 78 year old French Mayor Bernard Baudoux. While Israel's president, foreign minister and military condemned the assault, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office questioned the reports, noting that the delegation had not coordinated its visit with the IDF and warning of a campaign to smear Jewish residents.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
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Israeli Police Arrest 10 Suspects Over West Bank Settler Attacks on Diplomats and Journalist
Geopolitics2 days ago
Israeli police detained 10 Israeli suspects in early morning raids across the central West Bank on Monday over weekend settler attacks on Palestinians, European diplomats and Washington Post photographer Heidi Levine. During the dawn operation, code-named Olive Leaf and conducted with the Shin Bet security agency and an Israel Defense Forces escort, officers seized several vehicles and evidence linking the suspects to the assaults. They face questioning over alleged violence, entering a closed military zone and illegal construction, while IDF and Border Police forces moved to dismantle illegal settler outposts and enforce army restraining orders.
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