Settlers Attack European Diplomatic Vehicles, Assault French Mayor in West Bank

Settlers attacked vehicles belonging to diplomatic missions from several European countries near the village of Taybeh, east of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, on Saturday evening. Masked settlers armed with clubs reportedly targeted delegations from France, Belgium, and Poland as they attempted to reach Taybeh. Local sources indicated that the settlers smashed the windows of the Belgian consulate's vehicle with stones and demanded identification from the passengers. Video footage showed one diplomat being thrown to the ground; this diplomat was identified as Bernard Bodo, the mayor of a town in northern France.

According to Israeli army radio, seven masked settlers arrived in four-wheel-drive vehicles, surrounded one of the diplomatic cars, and demanded identification. They also damaged a window of the Belgian consulate vehicle. The attack began around 1:29 PM, and an activist accompanying the delegations documented the incident and sent the location's coordinates to the Israeli army at 1:31 PM.

Despite the European delegations being present for three hours, Israeli army and police forces did not arrive to take statements or arrest the perpetrators. This lack of response, as reported by Israeli army radio, forced the delegations to leave the area without assistance. Subsequently, the Israeli police issued a statement claiming they had opened an investigation into the settlers' attack. The statement added that the foreign ministry had been informed to identify the European diplomatic delegations, collect their statements, and identify the settlers involved.