Illegal Israeli settlers attacked a European diplomatic delegation visiting the occupied West Bank on Saturday, injuring several people as representatives from France, Belgium and Poland toured the Palestinian town of Taybeh.
The attack took place after an official ceremony marking the signing of a twinning agreement between the Palestinian town of Taybeh and the French town of Saint-Pierre, Taybeh Mayor Suleiman Khourieh told Anadolu Agency (AA).
The ceremony was attended by the French and Belgian consuls, a Polish representative whose name was not disclosed, and Saint-Pierre Mayor Christian Ravain.
The attack targeted the delegation in the western part of the town, as well as Palestinians who were picking olives.
It left several town residents injured and shattered the window of a vehicle belonging to the Belgian delegation, Khourieh added.
The 78-year-old French mayor said masked settlers yelled defamatory comments about France, kicked him and hit him with iron bars as he joined Palestinian olive farmers in the West Bank alongside the top French and Belgian representatives in Jerusalem and Polish diplomats.
"I think that if settlers are behaving like this, there is a tolerance on the part of the Israeli government," Bernard Baudoux, mayor of the northern French town of Aulnoye-Aymeries, told AFP after he was attacked.
"The whole world needs to know what's happening," he said. "For me, I'll go back to my country and everything will be fine. Those who continue to suffer the most are those who are here."
Baudoux, who was wearing a sash with the French tricolour, was seen collapsed on the side of the car after the attack, but he did not need hospital care.
He, said he had come to the town of Taybeh, a Christian stronghold, along with his local pastor from France to sign a goodwill agreement.
He was attacked just as he joined the harvest as a symbolic gesture with the Palestinians, for whom olives are an important cultural symbol.
Extremist Israelis have issued calls to stop the Palestinians' annual harvest after months of escalating attacks in which settlers have stolen land and property.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said in a statement that Israel must "urgently halt criminal violence" and arrest those responsible for attacking Baudoux, with his Belgian counterpart issuing a similar call.
Israeli Army Radio, citing witnesses and footage, also said that the occupiers hurled stones at one of the diplomatic vehicles, smashing its window.
Footage showed a member of the delegation lying on the ground after the attack. The person shown lying on the ground beside the diplomatic vehicle was Bernard Boudot, a French politician and mayor of Aulnoy-lez-Valenciennes in northern France, the broadcaster said.
Israel’s Channel 12, citing the Israeli military, reported that the incident was "under review” and none had been arrested immediately.
Khourieh described the attack as "a flagrant violation of the sanctity of diplomatic and humanitarian work” and part of ongoing restrictions imposed on Palestinian farmers.
Attacks by Israeli occupiers against Palestinians and their land have intensified during the olive harvest season, which began in early October and provides a key source of income for thousands of Palestinian families.
Israel's foreign ministry condemned the attack on the diplomats and Israeli police promised to open an investigation.
But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is seeking to shore up support from the fiercely pro-settlement far-right in the October 27 election, instead alleged a "smear" campaign against settlers.
Netanyahu said the diplomats should have coordinated their movements with the Israeli military and pointed out that Baudoux is a communist known for supporting the Palestinian cause.
"We urge caution before drawing conclusions" about the attacks, Netanyahu's office said in a statement.
His main rival in the elections, former military chief Gadi Eisenkot, strongly criticised Netanyahu over the violence, saying it was "burning away the little legitimacy the State of Israel still possesses".
The attacks are "Jewish terrorism, under the auspices of the Israeli government", Eisenkot said.
