‘She was clearly beaten’: Washington Post hits back at Netanyahu over journalist attack

The Washington Post has challenged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s account of an attack on its photojournalist Heidi Levine by masked settlers in the occupied West Bank, insisting that video footage clearly shows her being beaten while wearing visible press identification.

The Independent reported that the newspaper’s executive editor, Matt Murray, responded on X on Friday after Netanyahu’s office said the circumstances surrounding the attack near Abu Falah remained unclear and were under investigation.

“To be clear: Some facts are neither in dispute nor unclear,” Murray wrote, adding that Levine was clearly marked as a journalist and had been beaten.

“These are not partisan or risible statements, but indisputable,” he said, urging a thorough investigation and accountability.

Netanyahu’s office said Israel condemned violence against Jews, Arabs, Christians and journalists, adding that those responsible would be held accountable.

However, the Israeli prime minister said reports indicated that around 200 Palestinians and left-wing activists had confronted approximately 40 Israeli youths. He also referred to other recordings that he said appeared to show Levine being knocked down and immediately helped to her feet by an unidentified person.

Netanyahu said the investigation should establish the facts, including who initiated the violence.

The Washington Post had earlier expressed outrage over what it described as an unwarranted attack on a journalist doing her job, noting that Levine was wearing visible markings identifying her as a member of the press.

Speaking from a hospital bed, Levine said she had been brutally attacked, pushed to the ground and robbed of her camera equipment, bag and phone.

“Luckily I had my flak jacket and helmet, otherwise I probably wouldn't even be here, because they just kept kicking me and kicking me,” she said.

Witnesses told Reuters that around 80 masked people carrying gas canisters descended on an olive harvest in Abu Falah, setting olive trees on fire and throwing rocks at Palestinians.

The Israeli military said its forces and Border Police had been dispatched following reports of a violent confrontation. It said they had used riot-dispersal measures and that all details of the incident would be examined.

Palestinian medics said two people were injured and taken to hospitals in the Ramallah area.

Levine was among a group of journalists covering the olive harvest amid a surge in settler violence. Israeli settlement-monitoring group Yesh Din has recorded at least 234 attacks related to the olive harvest since September 27, with soldiers documented as present in more than a quarter of the incidents.

The United Nations has reported that Israeli forces and settlers have killed more than 1,140 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank over the past three years.