The European Union has condemned Israeli settler attacks on EU diplomats and Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, amid unprecedented settler pogroms during the Palestinian olive harvest.
asserted
Union → condemn → harvest
“We expect full accountability as well as effective measures to prevent continued acts of violence and violent harassment against Palestinians, including during the ongoing olive harvest season, as well as against journalists,” the EU said in a statement on Sunday.
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EU → expect → Sunday
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ties → urge → Europe
Can its election change that?
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election → change → that
“We urge Israel to fully abide by International Humanitarian and Human Rights Law, and to cease the expansion of settlements.”
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We → urge → settlements
Israeli settler attacks during this year’s olive harvest season have already surpassed 2025 totals, with critics pointing out that mere condemnations by the EU and member states without holding Israel to account will not deter settler pogroms, which are granted impunity by the Israeli authorities.
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which → surpass → authorities
Saturday’s incident is the latest in weeks of intensifying pogroms against local communities in the occupied West Bank by Israelis from illegal settlements who are largely protected – or at least unrestricted – by Israeli forces.
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who → intensify → forces
On Friday, Israeli settlers also attacked Palestinian olive pickers and a veteran photojournalist.
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settlers → attack → pickers
Why have settler pogroms surged during olive harvest season in the occupied West Bank?
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pogroms → surge → Bank
Here’s what we know:
What has been the response?
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response → ’ → what
Belgium’s Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot said the country’s consul general to the Palestinians, as well as French and Polish diplomats and Catholic representatives, were also among those attacked.
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general → say → those
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot called on the Israeli government to arrest the settlers who assaulted Bernard Baudoux, the mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries, and said on X it must “urgently put an end to this criminal violence and ensure the safety of the civilian population”.
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it → call → population
The assault has prompted an Israeli police investigation, as settler pogroms disrupt the Palestinian harvest across the occupied territory.
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pogroms → prompt → territory
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Trump administration is “very disturbed” by the images of the settler attack on American photojournalist Heidi Levine, 64, who works as a freelance photojournalist for The Washington Post, in the occupied West Bank on Friday.
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who → say → Friday
Speaking to reporters at the Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, Rubio said he was yet to receive an official briefing on Friday’s incident, but what he saw “didn’t look good”.
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saw → speak → what
He urged Israel to “crack down” on the violence and said President Donald Trump does not want to see “friction” or “a crisis” in the West Bank.
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Trump → urge → Bank
Ahmed Najar, a Palestinian political analyst and playwright, told Al Jazeera that condemnation without consequences is not accountability.
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condemnation → tell → consequences
“Western governments continue to arm, fund and diplomatically protect Israel while treating settler attacks as isolated acts by a few extremists.
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governments → continue → extremists
But this violence flourishes within a wider system of occupation, settlement expansion and impunity,” he said.
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he → flourish → occupation
“The West cannot claim to oppose settler violence while continuing to support the state and policies that enable it,” he added.
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he → claim → it
Sven Kuhn von Burgsdorff, former EU representative to the occupied West Bank and Gaza, had a similar view.
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Burgsdorff → have → view
“The lame protests issued by the European chancelleries in response to these terrorist acts of Israeli settlers are pathetic since they are not followed up by concrete punitive measures,” he said.
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he → issue → measures
“This is especially disgraceful considering that this settler terrorism has been going on for years with full impunity.
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terrorism → consider → impunity
At the last Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels on October 12, the EU ministers were still unable to decide on sanctioning the violent settlers and/or its enablers, the annexationist apartheid government of PM Netanyahu,” he added.
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he → decide → Netanyahu
What happened on Saturday?
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What → happen → Saturday
On Saturday, Israeli settlers attacked vehicles belonging to diplomats from France, Belgium and Poland near the Palestinian Christian village of Taybeh in the occupied West Bank.
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settlers → attack → Bank
At least seven masked settlers surrounded the vehicles, demanded identification documents, smashed the window of a vehicle belonging to the Belgian consulate and assaulted the French mayor, according to witnesses and media reports.
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settlers → surround → witnesses
The 78-year-old told the Reuters news agency that he was “a bit shaken” by the event.
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he → tell → event
“I had my mayor’s sash on, with the blue, white and red colours, which clearly represent the symbol of France, in an attempt to protect the people around me.
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which → have → me
Well, that was not enough, and I was attacked, violently attacked, protected by the people who were there to try and limit things,” Baudoux said.
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Baudoux → attack → things
He said the settlers threw him to the ground, after which his group rushed back into their vehicles to leave.
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group → say → vehicles
“I didn’t think something like this could happen to me coming here as a pacifist to celebrate a ‘twinning’ — friendship between two cities,” he added.
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he → think → cities
However, refusing to be terrified by the attack, Baudoux said, “I think we need to go back to the olive plantations because they have great significance for the Palestinian people.”
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they → refuse → people
Former EU diplomat Burgsdorff told Al Jazeera these attacks are not new, saying he witnessed “thugs attacking peaceful Palestinian farmers and citizens” during his visits to the occupied Palestinian territory between January 2020 and July 2023.
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thugs → tell → January
“Once a settler mob even threw stones at us – but we were already in our vehicles.
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we → throw → vehicles
Since we couldn’t count on protection by Israeli police or military, we left the scene of confrontation as soon as possible,” he added.
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he → count → confrontation
Where else have settlers attacked olive pickers?
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settlers → attack → pickers
In recent weeks, Israeli settlers have intensified pogroms against Palestinians picking olives in the region.
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settlers → intensify → region
Earlier on Saturday, settlers injured six Palestinians as Israeli forces arrested farmers during pogroms across the occupied West Bank.
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forces → injure → Bank
Four women and a child were among the injured when Israeli settlers attacked residents in Ma’in village in the Masafer Yatta area, south of Hebron, according to the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS).
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settlers → injure → Society
…and 38 more, not listed.
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