Israeli settlers attack European diplomats, beat French mayor

Masked Israeli settlers attacked a convoy of European diplomats and a French mayor in the occupied West Bank on Saturday, according to reports from Al-Monitor, ABC News AU, and the Toronto Sun. Bernard Baudoux, the 78-year-old mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries, told Reuters he was thrown to the ground, kicked, and hit with iron bars while harvesting olives near the village of Taybeh.

ABC News AU reported that Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot stated the attackers also targeted Palestinian civilians, Polish diplomats, and Belgium's consul general to the Palestinians.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar described the perpetrators as Israeli rioters, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu suggested the reports might be part of a coordinated "smear" campaign against settlers. Netanyahu stated that the diplomats should have coordinated their movements with the Israeli military and noted that Baudoux is a communist known for supporting the Palestinian cause. ABC News AU reported that Israeli police have opened an investigation into the incident.

The violence follows an attack on Thursday where, according to Middle East Eye, a Washington Post journalist was beaten by a group of settlers. Former army chief Gadi Eisenkot accused the government of sponsoring "Jewish terrorism" in response to the recent violence. ABC News AU reported that Maxime Prevot called for Israeli authorities to ensure the safety of diplomats and bring those responsible to justice.

Brief written by urgent.news from Al-Monitor, ABC News AU, Toronto Sun, Middle East Eye, The Times of Israel — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.