Israeli settlers beat AFP photographer as soldiers watch in West Bank
- A veteran Agence France-Presse photographer was hospitalized after armed Israeli settlers beat him with rifle butts in the occupied West Bank, while a dozen Israeli soldiers watched without...
- Ashtiyeh and fellow AFP photographer John Wessels were covering a Palestinian olive harvest near Aqraba when an Israeli soldier detained a local man.
- At least six other armed individuals then rushed toward the AFP photographers.
A veteran Agence France-Presse photographer was hospitalized after armed Israeli settlers beat him with rifle butts in the occupied West Bank, while a dozen Israeli soldiers watched without intervening, according to reporting by the sources. Jaafar Ashtiyeh, 58, sustained head and torso bruises near the northern village of Aqraba during a worsening wave of seasonal violence against Palestinian olive harvesters, an economic lifeline for the region.
Assault on Journalists and Farmers Near Aqraba
Ashtiyeh and fellow AFP photographer John Wessels were covering a Palestinian olive harvest near Aqraba when an Israeli soldier detained a local man. Across the occupied West Bank, harvesters were beaten, trees were burned, crops and tools were stolen, and Israeli soldiers closed land to its owners. Near the AFP journalists, a quad bike raced up a hill, and a man aboard opened live fire, dropping a Palestinian to the ground with a gunshot to the foot, according to the Palestine Red Crescent Society.
At least six other armed individuals then rushed toward the AFP photographers. When Ashtiyeh tried to enter a car clearly marked Press,
two men dragged him out and struck him repeatedly with rifle butts while about a dozen Israeli soldiers stood roughly 500 meters away. Wessels, who was threatened at gunpoint, stated that the initial gunman wore a long white shirt along with military fatigue trousers and boots commonly worn by soldiers. Assailants also stole Ashtiyeh’s camera equipment.
Widespread Settler Violence Surging During Harvest Season
The assault occurred amid a severe spike in West Bank violence as the olive harvest season coincides with upcoming Israeli elections at the end of October. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Media Observatory recorded 223 settler attacks between September 29 and October 5, including 113 incidents specifically targeting the olive harvest. These figures encompassed crop thefts across 47 villages, 50 farmer assaults, and eight incidents involving the cutting or uprooting of olive trees.
Additional reporting from Arab News notes that the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs documented more than 1,600 settler attacks between January and August 2026, averaging 6.7 attacks per day—up from five per day in 2025. In Taybeh, the West Bank’s last entirely Christian village, residents have been cut off from their olive groves after the Israeli army declared the area a closed military zone, Vatican News reported. Activist Ihab Hassan told Vatican News that while villagers cannot reach their land, Israeli settlers roam freely and have subjected local families to continuous attacks and displacement.
Condemnation and Demands for Investigation
Media organizations issued sharp condemnations following the attack on Ashtiyeh. Phil Chetwynd, AFP’s global news director, condemned what he called another serious attack on journalists and demanded a full investigation into the inaction of security forces. The Foreign Press Association similarly stated that it was deeply alarmed and urged Israeli authorities to investigate why soldiers present in the area failed to intervene. The UN Human Rights Office previously noted that Israel was the world’s leading killer of journalists in 2025, having killed at least 225 journalists in Lebanon and Gaza.
Israeli authorities must investigate why soldiers present in the area did not intervene in this attack against clearly identified journalists.
Foreign Press Association
Ashtiyeh Remains in Hospital for Observation
Following the attack, Ashtiyeh was transported to a hospital in Nablus, where X-rays showed no broken bones. His son, Zain Jaafar, stated that his father remained conscious and would stay in the hospital for round-the-clock observation. Meanwhile, international media representatives emphasized that physical assaults and intimidation will not deter accurate reporting from the West Bank, where roughly 500,000 Israeli settlers live alongside 3 million Palestinians.