Washington Post Photographer Heidi Levine Hospitalized After Israeli Settlers Beat Her in West Bank
RAMALLAH, West Bank — Veteran Washington Post photojournalist Heidi Levine was hospitalized Friday after masked Israeli settlers beat her during an attack on Palestinian olive harvesters in the occupied West Bank, the newspaper and multiple outlets reported.
Levine, a Jerusalem-based photographer who has covered Middle East conflicts for decades, was documenting the annual olive harvest near the village of Abu Falah, northeast of Ramallah, when dozens of masked settlers descended from a nearby hill, according to Reuters journalists who witnessed the confrontation. Settlers threw stones, set olive trees ablaze, and surrounded Levine as she covered her face with her hands.
“I had my camera bag and my pouch with my passport, and my telephone was on a rope around my neck and they broke that off me, and they broke my cameras off me, and they broke my bag, and they kept kicking me,” Levine said in a video statement. She estimated the assault lasted about ten minutes. Her equipment was stolen and her vehicle damaged.
Levine was wearing a protective vest clearly marked “PRESS” on the front and back. She said she believed her helmet saved her life. The Washington Post said she was hospitalized and recovering.
“This morning, a Washington Post photographer, Heidi Levine, was attacked by Israeli settlers while reporting in the West Bank,” executive editor Matt Murray said in a statement. “She was wearing visible markings clearly identifying her as a journalist. While we are relieved that Heidi has received medical care and is safe, we are outraged by this unwarranted attack on a journalist doing her job and urge a thorough investigation and follow-through from authorities.”
The Palestinian Red Crescent said at least six Palestinians were wounded in settler attacks on olive harvesters across several West Bank villages on Friday. Witnesses said roughly 80 settlers took part in the assault near Abu Falah, with Israeli authorities opening an investigation into the clashes.
The attack drew swift condemnation from press-freedom advocates as yet another example of the dangers facing journalists documenting escalating settler violence in the West Bank.
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