European diplomats attacked by Israeli settlers in West Bank

Image source, ReutersImage caption, Masked settlers are accused of attacking the convoy.

• Palestinians and US journalist injured by Israeli settlers in West Bank harvest attackPublished1 day ago.

Correspondente diplomático, reportando de Jerusalém, uma delegação de diplomatas europeus foi atacada por colonos israelenses mascarados na Cisjordânia ocupada.

Bélgica condenou o ataque ao seu cônsul-geral e aos demais embaixadores e pediu que Israel leve os responsáveis à justiça.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) also condemned what they called "the severe act of violence" and said they were investigating.

But the office of the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cast doubt on what happened and suggested it was part of a "coordinated campaign to smear Israel.

O ataque ocorreu apenas um dia depois de vários palestinos e Heidi Levine, fotógrafa do Washington Post, terem sido feridos em um ataque separado por colonos em outra vila na Cisjordânia.

The diplomats - from Belgium, France, Poland and the Catholic Church - had come to the largely Christian village of Taybeh near Ramallah.

They were there to assess the situation on the ground after almost near daily attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinians trying to bring in their olive harvest.

Video footage from the scene showed masked settlers confronting the convoy. Reports suggest stones were thrown.

As autoridades belgas disseram que um carro do consulado teve uma janela quebrada e um prefeito francês foi agredido. Um vídeo mostrou um homem vestindo um lenço tricolor francês deitado ao lado de um veículo.

Belgium's foreign minister Maxime Prevot condemned the attack and said Israel had a responsibility to bring those responsible to justice.

Palestinians face this violence every day. Settlers also target journalists reporting on it and diplomats. Harvesting olives, reporting the news or carrying out diplomatic duties should never put anyone at risk of attack," he said.

Como potência ocupante, as autoridades israelenses devem proteger os palestinos, garantir a segurança de diplomatas e jornalistas e levar os responsáveis à justiça.

Impunity for violent settlers must end. Belgium will continue to press for EU sanctions against those responsible for this violence and those who support them.

Gideon Sa'ar, Israel's foreign minister, said he strongly condemned the violence by what he called "Israeli rioters". He said the foreign ministry was in contact with the ambassadors of the countries involved.

Mas ele acrescentou: “Sem diminuir a gravidade do incidente, é lamentável que a visita não tenha sido coordenada com o IDF com antecedência. Tal coordenação poderia ter ajudado a proteger a segurança dos visitantes.”.

O IDF disse que “condena fortemente o ato violento severo que ocorreu na área de Taybeh, durante o qual representantes diplomáticos foram atacados por manifestantes israelenses”.

According to a preliminary inquiry, no IDF soldiers were present at the scene at the time of the attack," they added.

Image source, ReutersImage caption, Netanyahu's office named the injured French official as Bernard Baudoux, the left-wing mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries.

But Netanyahu's office urged "caution before drawing conclusions" from reports about the attack.

Ele disse que as imagens nas redes sociais “não estabelecem a sequência completa dos eventos ou a responsabilidade individual”.

A statement continued: "Those circumstances remain under investigation. Israeli police and forensic investigators have launched an investigation to establish the facts and identify those responsible.

Netanyahu's office named the injured French official as Bernard Baudoux. The left-wing mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries in northern France told the AFP news agency the attack showed a tolerance by Israel's right-wing government for settler violence.

O prefeito disse que os colonos o chutaram e o bateram com barras de ferro, jogando-o ao chão.

É a natureza gratuita da violência que me espanta," ele disse. "Eles chegaram completamente enfurecidos.

The whole world needs to know what's happening there. For me, I'll go back to my country and everything will be fine. Those who continue to suffer the most are those who are here," he said.