On November 8, 2025, dozens of Israeli settlers, backed by soldiers, carried out a widespread attacks in Beita, Burin & other areas.

Beita:

International activists and journalists were severely injured after the settlers attacked the olive harvesters and activist protected them on Qamas mountain in the town of Beita, south of Nablus in the West Bank. The assault targeted both Palestinians and those standing with them defending their land from ongoing colonial settlement expansion.

About 30 villagers and activists, plus about 10 journalists, had gathered for the harvest when dozens of men descended from the outpost on a hill and launched an attack, beating people with sticks and repeatedly striking Reuters photographer Raneen Sawafta as she tried to protect herself.

Palestinian landowners, human rights activists, and journalists witnessed the attack in Beita. According to one activist, settlers had erected an outpost consisting of a single tent – which they named "Harbinger of Peace" – in the middle of the groves, several hundred meters from the pickers.

Jonathan Pollak, an Israeli rights activist who witnessed the incident, and was also injured, said to Reuters that about 50 masked settlers were involved, saying those who attacked Sawafta "beat her up without mercy, continuing to stone her while she was on the ground and then continuing to attack everyone who was coming to her help." He said the settlers shouted in Hebrew, including comments such as "Go from there."

Reuters Journalist, Ranee Sawafta, was accompanied by Reuters security adviser Grant Bowden who was beaten as he tried to protect her. Her camera equipment was smashed. Both wore helmets and had clear "Press" labels on their protective jackets. Sawafta's helmet had a large dent after the attack. An ambulance took them both for medical checks and treatment at a hospital in the Palestinian city of Nablus. She sustained bruises and fractures.

The Al Jazeera film crew was attacked by masked Israeli settlers: Journalist Muhammad Al-Atrash and photographer Luay Asaid were injured.

Cameraman Nael Buital, was also injured: his leg was broken and he was transferred to Al-Istshari hospital.

Oded Yedaya, principal of the Minshar School of Art, suffered a broken jaw and cheekbone.

The Health Ministry said that its medics treated 11 people who sustained injuries after being beaten by Israeli forces and illegal settlers in Beita, noting that their conditions were stable.

Injured:

1. Reuters photographer Raneen Sawafta,
2. Al Jazeera correspondent Mohammed Al-Atrash,
3. Al Jazeera photographer Luay Saeed,
4. Cameraman Nael Buital, was injured in the most violent settlers’ attack against Palestinian journalists in Beita. His leg was broken and he was transferred to Al-Istshari hospital.
5. Jonathan Pollak, Israeli right activist
6. Oded Yedaya, principal of the Minshar School of Art.

2 paramedics (PRCS)

2 foreign activists

Settler attack on Palestinians in the West Bank on Saturday. Credit: Itay Ron

(Note that the area where the attack occurred is the same location where a pevious coordinated attack of soldiers and settlers toke place on October 10. That day also saw violence from both settlers and soldiers, resulting in 20 injuries, including one person who was shot by a settler. Beita has been violently repressed for years, leading to the killing of 18 Palestinians since 2020 and of Turkish – American activist Ayşenur Eygi a year ago. Thousands more have been injured during demonstrations and raids).

Testimony of an activist:

The settlers also attacked journalists and Red Crescent volunteers with clubs as they fled. "I tried to help evacuate the wounded," he said. "A 19-year-old Red Crescent volunteer had been hit in the head, lost his glasses, and couldn't run. We helped him out. When I reached the village, I drove to the emergency center and came across another activist who'd been hit in the back of the neck with a rock and was dazed. I drove him there too."

Testimony of Oded Yedaya:

Israeli artist and activist Oded Yedaya was seriously injured when a masked settler hurled a stone at his head, breaking his cheekbone and leaving a deep wound beneath his eye. “He deliberately aimed for the head,” Yedaya said from his hospital bed. His wife added, “If he had thrown a little higher, he would have killed him.”. As former elite soldier who once served with Benjamin Netanyahu, Yedaya believes the attack marks a dangerous turn: “It’s quite possible we’ve reached the moment when settlers are trying to kill Jews.” He describes an atmosphere of impunity: “The situation has deteriorated in the last two years. They have a license for violence, and the army intervenes less.” Yedaya, who has spent two decades documenting protests and Palestinian life, says he has sacrificed his privacy to expose the violence: “Just as we abandon our bodies in demonstrations, I abandoned my privacy for anything that might help or shock.” Despite his injuries, he remains defiant: “It’s a shame so much suffering is needed before change can happen.”

Testimony of IMS- Palestine:

On Saturday, November 8, Masked Israeli settlers armed with clubs attacked Palestinian farmers and solidarity activists, with many hospitalized after, in the Jabal Qamas area of Beita, south of Nablus, near the recently established Mevaser Shalom outpost, built on Beita’s confiscated land. After a few hours of successful olive harvest, a group of around 50 settlers, masked and armed with clubs and sticks, descended on the harvesters from the hillside, hurling rocks at them. The assault left 14 people injured and in need of medical attention, including several Palestinian farmers, 3 medical personnel, two of whom suffering head injuries, 4 journalists, and 3 solidarity activists – one of them a US citizen, all of them sustaining head wounds. Reuters journalist Raneen Sawafta was bludgeoned and stoned, even after she had fallen to the ground. Settlers attacked anyone who tried to help her. One solidarity activist suffered a broken cheekbone and jaw. When he reached the Beita clinic before being transferred to an hospital, his shirt was soaked in blood and his head was split open. Despite the Israeli Occupation Forces claimed they had deployed soldiers to the scene to “disperse the confrontation”, eyewitnesses confirm that no Israeli military or police were present where the attack took place.

In the same time, in Burin,

In the nearby village of Burin, several Palestinian farmers and international activists were injured after being attacked by Israeli settlers while harvesting olives east of the village, according to a statement from the Palestinian Red Crescent.

Acccording to B.M. @ireallyhateyou the "peacenik" IDF soldier Yuval Ben Ami who invaded Lebanon with an anti-occupation shirt, was among the protective presence. He was beaten by the settlers while joining the Palestinian olive harvest in Burin. He told them he's a reservist so they yelled at him "It's the last time you betray your brothers!

Statement of The Foreign Press Association (FPA):

An organization representing international media in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza on Monday condemned attacks by Israeli settlers on journalists in the West Bank, urging Israeli authorities to halt the “violence immediately.”. FPA, which represents hundreds of foreign journalists, said it was “appalled” by the recent attacks, especially during this year’s olive harvest: “Journalists, both local and foreign, have proven to be a clear target as they document an unprecedented level of unchecked violence against Palestinians during this year’s olive harvest,”.

The FPA said that on Saturday, two employees of Reuters wearing clearly marked press vests and helmets were assaulted by masked Israeli civilians armed with clubs and rocks near the Palestinian village of Beita: “A mob of dozens of settlers beat one of the employees, a female reporter, while she was already on the ground, resulting in severe injuries,”