The incident took place in the Palestinian town of Taybeh shortly after 1pm. Bernard Baudoux, the mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries, was attacked by Israeli settlers while wearing his mayor’s sash of office.
Vincent Dollmann, the archbishop of Cambrai, was also part of the group that was harvesting olives with Palestinians. The group received a warning that settlers had attacked Palestinians harvesting olives nearby before the militants targeted the SUV as it pulled away.
The attack smashed one of the reinforced windows at the back of the car, which displayed diplomatic plates. One of the attackers aggressively shouted “France, France” during the confrontation.
Heidi Levine was hospitalised after a brutal attack by Israeli militants. The embassy security team helped Baudoux into the vehicle after the assault.
Footage shows 22 seconds between the last shot of Baudoux remonstrating with his attackers and him slumped on the ground. Netanyahu’s office described reports of the attacks as ‘unproven allegations’ and called it a ‘disputed incident’ where ‘the facts … remain unclear and are under investigation’.
The office of the prime minister stated, “Serious accusations require serious evidence.” The statement added, “These images alone do not establish the complete sequence of events or individual responsibility.”
The statement expressed “concerns about a coordinated campaign to smear Israel.” The statement further said, “We call on the public and responsible journalists to demand verifiable evidence, reject hearsay and refuse to turn unproven allegations into a collective indictment of the Jewish residents of Judea and Samaria [the occupied West Bank].”
More than 12 of Israel’s top former diplomats gathered outside the foreign ministry in Jerusalem on Sunday to protest. Two former directors general, one deputy director general and a host of ambassadors held up signs at the demonstration.
