Masked Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian farmers and foreign activists in the West Bank town of Qusra on Sunday, according to the victims and videos obtained by CNN.
The eight activists were part of a grassroots campaign called Defend Palestine, which encourages international volunteers to protect Palestinians from settler violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Two Americans and a German national were hospitalized with suspected fractures, while another American volunteer suffered minor injuries. One Palestinian farmer was also hospitalized.
Three of the injured foreigners, Vivi Chen, David Hummel, and Jedda, who declined to give his last name, recounted the attack to CNN from a hospital in Nablus. They were helping Palestinian farmers access their olive fields, which had been off-limits since October due to settler attacks. The group was suddenly confronted by several young settlers on a hill.
“They stood there for a while, then approached us and began hitting us with thick wooden sticks, almost like baseball bats,” Chen said. Videos show the activists trying to retreat, with one falling, another shielding himself, and at least one being kicked and hit with a rock. One woman fell down a hill and was struck with a rock, losing her phone and documents in the process.
“We were doing nothing,” Hummel said. “Our hands were up, and we were backing up, trying to protect each other. We kept moving back after being hit multiple times.”
Israel captured the West Bank from Jordan in the 1967 war and began settling Jews in the area. There are now more than 700,000 Jewish settlers in the West Bank. The international community considers these settlements illegal and views the territory as occupied. Palestinians seek the West Bank for a future independent state.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) recently deemed Israel’s presence in the West Bank and East Jerusalem illegal, calling for an end to the occupation, a halt to new settlements, and reparations for damages.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) acknowledged the attack, stating that “a number of masked Israeli civilians assaulted a group of foreign citizens while they were planting trees in the area.” The IDF condemned the violence and said soldiers were sent to maintain security, firing warning shots to disperse the attackers.
However, activists reported that soldiers aimed their guns at a Palestinian man accompanying the volunteers and fired in his direction. “He was our friend, and we were shouting, ‘No, no! He’s our friend!’” they said. The IDF did not respond to CNN’s inquiry about this alleged targeting. The injured activists received treatment from the Palestinian Red Crescent at a Nablus hospital, with photos showing multiple cuts and bruises. Hummel’s face was severely swollen on one side.
Mohammed Khatib, a Defend Palestine organizer, said, “The attack, less than 24 hours after the ICJ ruling, underscores the urgent need for international civil protection in Palestine.” Chen added that while the group was aware of settler violence, they did not expect to be attacked. “Our injuries are minor compared to what Palestinians face daily,” she said.
This assault followed a separate incident on Saturday near Hebron, where a video showed Israeli settlers attacking a Palestinian family with sticks before a soldier fired a warning shot.
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