Three journalists and activists report beatings by settlers in West Bank village

Tensions have risen in the Masafer Yatta area of the occupied West Bank following a recent wave of physical confrontations between armed settlers and international observers. On social media, Russian activist Adele Shoko detailed an incident in the Palestinian village of Umm al-Khair where she and two colleagues were attacked by armed men.

Shoko stated that she, US journalist Jasper Nathaniel, and Israeli-Russian activist Andrey X were beaten and threatened by the settlers. According to her account, the group had their equipment and personal items stolen during the confrontation. Nathaniel was pepper-sprayed and subsequently arrested by Israeli forces after the initial assault.

Andrey X suffered a concussion and lost consciousness multiple times during the incident. Shoko reported that authorities denied him hospital treatment despite his condition. She wrote that he was placed in an ambulance but taken to a police station instead of a hospital, where he remains arrested and without medical care.

Video footage posted by Shoko showed several armed men beating Nathaniel and X. In a separate clip, Israeli authorities led Nathaniel away while he shouted that he had just been beaten. Shoko’s posts provided specific details about the detention and the lack of immediate medical attention for the injured activist.

This incident follows a separate assault on October 16 in Abu Falah, northeast of Ramallah. Masked settlers attacked Palestinian farmers harvesting olives, setting trees on fire and using slingshots to throw stones. The Washington Post photojournalist Heidi Levine was covering the event when she was beaten, robbed, and hospitalized.

Levine, who wore a protective vest marked PRESS, said settlers kicked and beat her on the ground before stealing her passport, phone, and camera. A Palestinian man was shot in the leg by Israeli soldiers who arrived with live ammunition and tear gas. Matt Murray, executive editor of The Washington Post, condemned the unwarranted attack on a journalist doing her job.

Several US lawmakers called for an investigation and an end to settler violence in the region following the October 16 incident. The recent reports from Umm al-Khair add to the pattern of physical confrontations involving armed settlers and international media personnel in the occupied territories.