On Saturday, Israeli settlers attacked a convoy of European diplomats and physically assaulted a visiting French mayor, marking a new escalation in violence amid the Palestinian olive harvest, according to witnesses and diplomatic sources.
The 78‑year‑old mayor reported that masked settlers shouted defamatory remarks about France, kicked him, and struck him with iron bars while he was accompanying Palestinian olive farmers alongside senior French and Belgian officials from Jerusalem and Polish diplomats.
“I believe that if settlers act this way, there is a degree of tolerance from the Israeli government,” said Bernard Baudoux, mayor of the northern French town of Aulnoye‑Aymeries, after the attack.
“The world needs to be aware of what is occurring,” he added. “I will return home and be safe; those who continue to bear the brunt are the people living here.”
