Al Jazeera investigation challenges Israeli account of Heidi Levine attack

The investigation has exposed how Israeli forces present at the site of the attack chose not to intervene, and instead fired tear gas at Palestinian youth who had helped save Levine.

US photojournalist Heidi Levine leaves a hospital emergency room in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, after being treated following an attack by Israeli settlers as she photographed Palestinian farmers harvesting their olives, in the village of Abu Falah on October 16, 2026. [AFP]

An Al Jazeera investigation has challenged official Israeli narratives regarding an attack by settlers on Palestinian olive harvesters and an American photojournalist on Friday in Khirbet Abu Falah, northeast of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.

The investigation by Al Jazeera’s Data Journalism Unit used open-source verification and analysis of visual and geographic evidence.

Official Israeli accounts of what happened differ: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office has questioned whether Israeli settlers were to blame at all, while the Israeli army has suggested that the military was engaged in addressing a confrontation between Palestinians and settlers at the time.

But verified footage and mapped coordinates reveal a coordinated attack by masked settlers, with Israeli military vehicles passing by shortly before the incident, without intervening.

The October 16 pogrom left veteran Washington Post photojournalist Heidi Levine, 63, with a broken rib, four fractured vertebrae, and wounds requiring hand surgery, despite wearing a clearly marked press vest.

To establish the facts, the Data Journalism Unit monitored and analysed more than 20 videos and photos taken by journalists and witnesses on the ground. The team independently verified the footage, arranged it chronologically, communicated with local journalists, and mapped key locations.

Geospatial analysis pinpoints the settler outpost where the attackers originated, the harvesting land, and the location of the assault on Levine.

The attack on Levine was mapped at the coordinates 32°01’13.5″N 35°18’40.7″E. This site is approximately 455 metres southwest of an outpost on a hill near the Misholash settlement, and just 120 metres north of the land where Palestinians were picking olives.

The unit also identified rooms traditionally used by Palestinians to store fertiliser and agricultural tools, and where farmers occasionally spend the night. These rooms are near the outpost, 430 and 500 metres northeast of the attack site. A local journalist, speaking on condition of anonymity due to security concerns, said that Palestinian owners can no longer enter these rooms, where settlers now stay and gather.

The journalist explained that the outpost is located in Area B under the Oslo Accords, where the Palestinian Authority (PA) manages civil affairs and Israel retains security control. While only a few settlers typically reside in the outpost to “prove” their presence, during any incident, 50 to 100 settlers from other outposts gather there before descending on the fields.

He noted that other settler tents on the adjacent mountain overlooking the village serve as additional gathering points to attack anyone harvesting olives.

Chronological evidence

Tracking the footage chronologically reveals a gradual escalation leading up to the attack.

Movements began around 8am when a 4×4 vehicle carrying settlers headed towards the site, followed by six motorcycles moving towards the area opposite the harvesters. In a video posted shortly after 9am, about 30 settlers are seen gathering near the farmers.

Al Jazeera correspondent Tharwat Shaqra, who was at the scene, said that Israeli military vehicles passed through the area, and after their passage, settlers headed towards the journalists and farmers, “as if it were a green light.” Independent Israeli journalist Oren Ziv noted that military jeeps made no attempt to stop the masked men.

The settlers then set fire to the olive trees and advanced towards the harvesters, prompting village youths to respond by throwing stones.

Footage subsequently documents the assault on Levine after she was knocked down. Her colleagues could only reach her after young Palestinians pushed the settlers back by throwing stones in their direction.

American journalist Jasper Nathaniel, who helped pull her away, wrote on X: “The only reason I was able to get to Heidi is because Palestinian youth provided cover with stones facing settlers and soldiers with machine guns and tear gas.” He added that the army pursued the young Palestinians after the attack, not the settlers.

During the same period, a video captured the sound of four gunshots followed by two more, which Tharwat Shaqra confirmed originated from the settlers.

Israeli forces only appeared to be deployed at the attack site in later footage, with their vehicles stationed in the settlers’ area. Soldiers then shot local council member Abdel Jaber Obeid and intercepted the ambulance before his transfer to hospital, as the army continued firing tear gas at the olive harvesters.

Conflicting Israeli claims

The timeline and geographical data contradict the official Israeli narratives.

The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office said that “the facts surrounding the confrontation near Abu Falah, during which Washington Post photojournalist Heidi Levine was allegedly assaulted, remain unclear and are under investigation”. It cited reports indicating “some 200 Arabs and far-left activists confronted approximately 40 Israeli youths”.

However, footage and testimonies show that the settlers gathered, descended, and burned trees before the youths responded, and the assault on Levine is documented on video.

Conversely, the army did not question the assault, acknowledging the injury of a foreign journalist. The Israeli military stated that forces were dispatched “following a report of a violent confrontation” and broke it up using “riot dispersal means”. It said soldiers “fired warning shots into the air and then fired toward a suspect who ran toward them, carrying a sharp object,” making no mention of the settlers or their gunfire.

The Israeli military’s international spokesperson Ariella Mazor told The Washington Post that soldiers in the area were trying to disperse a large, violent crowd and did not see the assault on Levine.

But evidence from videos and other testimony suggests that military vehicles in the area passed by the settlers without intervening and that Israeli forces eventually directed tear gas at Palestinians after the attack.

Widespread condemnation

The attack prompted widespread condemnation. United States Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee demanded that “those who attacked unarmed reporter should spend YRS in prison”.

He said that “attacking a female photographer is despicable act of terror carried out by masked cowards”.

调查揭露了袭击现场的以色列军队如何选择不进行干预，反而向帮助营救莱文的巴勒斯坦青年发射催泪瓦斯。

2026年10月16日，美国摄影记者海蒂·莱文在被占领的约旦河西岸拉马拉的阿布法拉赫村拍摄巴勒斯坦农民采摘橄榄时遭到以色列定居者袭击，随后在医院急诊室接受治疗。[法新社]

半岛电视台的一项调查对以色列官方关于周五在被占领的约旦河西岸拉马拉东北部的希尔贝特阿布法拉赫发生的定居者袭击巴勒斯坦橄榄采摘者和一名美国摄影记者的说法提出了质疑。

半岛电视台数据新闻部门的调查采用了开源数据验证和对视觉及地理证据的分析。

以色列官方对事件经过的说法不一：总理本雅明·内塔尼亚胡的办公室质疑以色列定居者是否应该为此负责，而以色列军方则表示，当时军方正在处理巴勒斯坦人和定居者之间的冲突。

但经核实的视频和地图坐标显示，这是一起由蒙面定居者发起的有组织的袭击，以色列军车在事件发生前不久经过，但并未进行干预。

10 月 16 日的种族屠杀导致 63 岁的资深《华盛顿邮报》摄影记者海蒂·莱文肋骨骨折、四节脊椎骨骨折，手部伤口需要进行手术，尽管她当时穿着一件明显带有新闻标识的背心。

为了查明事实，数据新闻组监测并分析了记者和目击者在现场拍摄的20多段视频和照片。该团队独立核实了这些影像资料，按时间顺序整理，与当地记者沟通，并绘制了关键地点地图。

地理空间分析精确定位了袭击者出发的定居者前哨站、收割土地以及袭击莱文的地点。

对莱文的袭击地点位于北纬 32°01'13.5″，东经 35°18'40.7″。该地点位于米绍拉什定居点附近山丘上的一个前哨站西南方向约 455 米处，距离巴勒斯坦人采摘橄榄的土地仅 120 米。

该小组还发现了巴勒斯坦人传统上用来存放化肥和农具的房间，农民偶尔也会在这些房间过夜。这些房间靠近前哨站，位于袭击地点东北方向430米和500米处。一位因安全考虑而要求匿名的当地记者表示，巴勒斯坦房主现在无法进入这些房间，定居者目前居住在这些房间内并在此聚集。

记者解释说，该前哨站位于《奥斯陆协议》划定的B区，巴勒斯坦权力机构负责管理该区域的民事事务，而以色列则保留安全控制权。虽然通常只有少数定居者居住在该前哨站以“证明”他们的存在，但一旦发生任何事件，就会有50到100名来自其他前哨站的定居者聚集到那里，然后前往田野。

他指出，在俯瞰村庄的邻近山上的其他定居者帐篷也成为了额外的聚集点，用来袭击任何采摘橄榄的人。

时间证据

按时间顺序观看录像，可以发现袭击发生前局势逐渐升级。

早上8点左右，一辆载着定居者的四驱车驶向该地点，随后六辆摩托车也向收割机对面的区域驶去，行动由此开始。在上午9点刚过发布的一段视频中，可以看到大约30名定居者聚集在农户附近。

半岛电视台记者萨尔瓦特·沙克拉当时就在现场，她表示，以色列军车驶过该地区后，定居者们便朝着记者和农民们走去，“仿佛一切尽在掌握”。以色列独立记者奥伦·齐夫指出，军用吉普车并未试图阻止这些蒙面男子。

随后，定居者放火烧了橄榄树，并向收割者逼近，这激怒了村里的年轻人，他们投掷石块进行还击。

随后的录像记录了莱文被击倒后遭到的袭击。她的同事们只有在巴勒斯坦青年向定居者投掷石块将他们推开后才得以接近她。

帮助海蒂脱险的美国记者贾斯珀·纳撒尼尔在X网站上写道：“我之所以能救出海蒂，全靠巴勒斯坦青年用石头掩护，抵挡定居者和士兵的机枪和催泪瓦斯。”他还补充说，袭击发生后，军队追捕的是巴勒斯坦青年，而不是定居者。

同期，一段视频记录了四声枪响，随后又响起两声枪响，Tharwat Shaqra 证实这些枪声来自定居者。

以色列军队似乎只在后来的录像中才出现在袭击现场，他们的车辆停放在定居者区域。随后，士兵向当地议员阿卜杜勒·贾贝尔·奥贝德开枪，并在他被送往医院前拦截了救护车，与此同时，军队继续向橄榄采摘者发射催泪瓦斯。

以色列方面相互矛盾的说法

时间线和地理数据与以色列官方说法相矛盾。

以色列总理办公室表示，“在阿布法拉赫附近发生的冲突中，《华盛顿邮报》摄影记者海蒂·莱文据称遭到袭击，但围绕该冲突的事实仍不清楚，目前正在调查中”。声明援引报道称，“约200名阿拉伯人和极左翼活动人士与大约40名以色列青年发生冲突”。

然而，录像和证词显示，定居者们聚集起来，走下山坡，烧毁了树木，然后年轻人才做出反应，而对莱文的袭击也被录像记录了下来。

相反，军方并未对此次袭击提出质疑，并承认一名外国记者受伤。以色列军方声称，接到“暴力冲突报告”后，他们立即派遣部队，并使用“防暴手段”驱散了冲突。军方表示，士兵“向空中鸣枪示警，然后向一名手持利器朝他们跑来的嫌疑人开枪”，但只字未提定居者及其开枪行为。

以色列军方国际发言人阿里埃拉·马佐尔告诉《华盛顿邮报》，该地区的士兵当时正在试图驱散一大群暴力人群，并没有看到对莱文的袭击。

但视频和其他证词的证据表明，该地区的军车从定居者身边经过时并未进行干预，而且以色列军队在袭击发生后最终向巴勒斯坦人发射了催泪瓦斯。

普遍谴责

此次袭击引发了广泛谴责。美国驻以色列大使迈克·赫卡比要求“袭击手无寸铁记者的凶手应该被判处终身监禁”。

他说，“袭击女摄影师是蒙面懦夫实施的卑鄙恐怖行为”。