Israel frees suspects in two settler attacks as West Bank pogroms intensify

Israeli court releases nine settler suspects over West Bank attacks as investigations into recent assaults continue.

Israeli forces stand guard as Israeli settlers gather at Palestinian-owned olive groves in Deir Abu Mishal, near Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, October 19, 2026 [Ammar AwadReuters]

Israel has released nine of the 10 Israeli settler suspects arrested over attacks on a US journalist and European diplomats in the occupied West Bank, placing them under house arrest.

An Israeli court in Jerusalem ordered the release late on Wednesday, according to Honenu, a law firm that represents Israeli settlers.

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Israeli police said one suspect remained in custody and that the investigation into the violent incidents was continuing.

Masked settlers were filmed last week assaulting Heidi Levine , a Washington Post photojournalist covering a Palestinian olive harvest who was taken to hospital and underwent surgery on a finger.

In a separate attack earlier this week, masked settlers assaulted French, Belgian and Polish diplomats and a French mayor in another part of the West Bank.

The suspects had been detained after the United States called for a crackdown on settler violence. France, Belgium and Poland also urged Israel to act.

“In the vast majority of attacks against Palestinians, no arrests are made at all,” said Yonatan Kanonich, head of research at the Israeli rights group Yesh Din. “In cases that receive media coverage … the police arrest several settlers and release most of them shortly afterward.”

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a post on X Thursday that the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory was “out of control”, with Palestinians continuing “to suffer daily attacks by Israeli settlers” and journalists and diplomats also being attacked.

Guterres called for “a credible political path towards lasting peace”.

Separately, the Palestinian Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission on Thursday said it documented 17 West Bank pogroms by Israeli forces and settlers against Palestinian farmers and their land during the olive harvest.

The commission recorded 409 attacks in October, 317 of which were by settlers and 92 by Israeli forces.

Nablus recorded the most attacks, 166, followed by Salfit with 91.

The commission said the attacks included assaults on farmers, preventing them from reaching their land, theft of crops and agricultural equipment, damage and burning of olive trees, as well as arrests, threats at gunpoint and live fire.

Ali Hassan Bazzari from Burqa died of wounds from settler gunfire while picking olives on October 7, the commission reported.

On Thursday, settlers set fire to olive trees near Imatin, east of Qalqilya, while Israeli forces forced farmers to leave and detained a farmer and several of his workers, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

Near Yabad, west of Jenin, settlers stole 17 bags of harvested olives and equipment, local sources said.

Citing a local Palestinian official, Wafa reported that around Jenin, Israeli forces closed transport roads and most village gates, preventing farmers from reaching land in Barta’a.

以色列法院释放了九名涉嫌参与西岸袭击事件的定居者嫌疑人，对近期袭击事件的调查仍在继续。

2026年10月19日，在被占领的约旦河西岸拉马拉附近的代尔阿布米沙尔，以色列定居者聚集在巴勒斯坦人拥有的橄榄树林中，以色列军队在一旁警戒。[阿马尔·阿瓦德，路透社]

以色列释放了因在被占领的西岸袭击美国记者和欧洲外交官而被捕的 10 名以色列定居者嫌疑人中的 9 人，并将他们软禁在家。

据代表以色列定居者的律师事务所 Honenu 称，耶路撒冷一家以色列法院于周三晚些时候下令释放了这些人。

巴勒斯坦周刊（共3条）：以色列定居者袭击记者和外交官

《耶路撒冷日报》报道（共3条）：以色列部长呼吁在整个西岸建立定居点

列表 3/3 从一栋房子到村庄：以色列定居者包围巴勒斯坦人

以色列警方表示，一名嫌疑人仍被拘留，对暴力事件的调查仍在继续。

上周，蒙面定居者袭击了《华盛顿邮报》摄影记者海蒂·莱文，她当时正在报道巴勒斯坦的橄榄收成。莱文被送往医院，并接受了手指手术。

在本周早些时候发生的另一起袭击事件中，蒙面定居者在西岸另一地区袭击了法国、比利时和波兰外交官以及一名法国市长。

在美国呼吁严厉打击定居者暴力行为后，这些嫌疑人被拘留。法国、比利时和波兰也敦促以色列采取行动。

以色列人权组织“Yesh Din”的研究主管约纳坦·卡诺尼奇表示：“在绝大多数针对巴勒斯坦人的袭击事件中，根本没有人被捕。在那些获得媒体报道的案件中……警方逮捕了几名定居者，但随后很快就释放了其中的大部分人。”

联合国秘书长安东尼奥·古特雷斯周四在X网站上发帖称，被占领的巴勒斯坦领土局势“失控”，巴勒斯坦人继续“遭受以色列定居者的每日袭击”，记者和外交官也遭到袭击。

古特雷斯呼吁“走上一条通往持久和平的可信的政治道路”。

另外，巴勒斯坦殖民和隔离墙抵抗委员会周四表示，他们记录了以色列军队和定居者在橄榄收获期间对西岸巴勒斯坦农民及其土地实施的 17 起大屠杀。

委员会记录显示，10 月份共发生 409 起袭击事件，其中 317 起是定居者所为，92 起是以色列军队所为。

纳布卢斯记录的袭击事件最多，达 166 起，其次是萨尔菲特，有 91 起。

委员会表示，这些袭击包括袭击农民，阻止他们到达自己的土地，偷窃农作物和农业设备，破坏和焚烧橄榄树，以及逮捕、持枪威胁和实弹射击。

据委员会报告，来自布尔卡的阿里·哈桑·巴扎里于 10 月 7 日在采摘橄榄时被定居者枪击受伤身亡。

据巴勒斯坦通讯社瓦法社报道，周四，定居者在盖勒吉利亚以东的伊马廷附近放火焚烧橄榄树，而以色列军队强迫农民离开，并拘留了一名农民和他的几名工人。

据当地消息人士称，在杰宁以西的亚巴德附近，定居者偷走了 17 袋收获的橄榄和一些农具。

瓦法通讯社援引一位巴勒斯坦当地官员的话说，在杰宁附近，以色列军队关闭了交通道路和大多数村庄大门，阻止农民到达巴尔塔的土地。