Palestine News Today: Settler Assault on US Photojournalist Sparks Congressional Outcry
17 October 2026. A violent settler attack on a Washington Post photographer during the West Bank olive harvest has drawn condemnation from US lawmakers, the State Department and the UN. Meanwhile, Gaza's hunger crisis deepens as commercial goods remain blocked, and international pressure mounts over settlement expansion and accountability for abuses against Palestinians.
US lawmakers press Trump administration on settler violence
American legislators have called on the administration to hold Israeli settlers accountable after photographer Heidi Levine was attacked while covering the olive harvest alongside Palestinian villagers, Middle East Eye reports. Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro said the assault, carried out in broad daylight against an American journalist, raises troubling questions about violence Palestinians endure when no cameras are present. Levine later described from her hospital bed how her son had long feared she would be killed by settlers, according to Middle East Eye.
Sources: Middle East Eye, Middle East Eye
State Department and UN demand accountability over attack
The US State Department said it was greatly concerned by the assault on Levine and had offered consular assistance, condemning what it called criminal violence by any party, Anadolu Agency and Middle East Monitor report. A UN deputy spokesman separately condemned the harassment of journalists following the attack, according to Anadolu Agency. The Guardian and BBC News reported that masked settlers wielding clubs attacked Palestinians and the photographer in a coordinated assault in the Abu Falah area.
Sources: Anadolu Agency, Middle East Monitor, Anadolu Agency, The Guardian, The Guardian, BBC News
Olive harvest violence surpasses last year, UN says
The UN humanitarian affairs office says settler attacks tied to this year's olive harvest have already exceeded the total recorded in all of 2025, according to Middle East Eye. Close to 200 attacks causing casualties or property damage have been documented so far this season, compared with 185 across the entire previous year. Middle East Monitor reported that fourteen people, including two foreign journalists, were injured in related attacks across the West Bank.
Sources: Middle East Eye, Middle East Monitor
New settler attacks reported across West Bank villages
Middle East Eye reports that settlers opened fire on farmers and attacked homes in villages east of Ramallah and south of Hebron, with several Palestinians injured while picking olives. Anadolu Agency reports that Israeli policy changes have expanded gun access for settlers while easing detention measures against them, which critics say is fueling the violence. A prominent Israeli rabbi has issued a religious ruling claiming Palestinian land belongs to Jews and that harvesting olives demonstrates ownership, Middle East Monitor and Anadolu Agency report.
Sources: Middle East Eye, Anadolu Agency, Anadolu Agency, Middle East Monitor
Italy expands probe into flotilla activists' treatment
Italian prosecutors have widened an investigation into the treatment of Gaza flotilla activists to include Israel's defense minister and senior military, police and prison officials, Middle East Eye and Al Jazeera report. The case, which previously focused on a far-right Israeli minister, concerns allegations of torture, kidnapping, injury and other abuses against detained activists. Twelve senior officials have now been named in the Rome probe, according to Al Jazeera.
Sources: Middle East Eye, Al Jazeera
Gaza families face worsening hunger as goods blocked
Commercial goods including fresh produce, meat and winter clothing have not entered Gaza for two days, deepening fears over food affordability, Al Jazeera reports. The Gaza Health Ministry says at least 466 Palestinians, including 157 children, have died of starvation since 2024, according to Middle East Monitor and Anadolu Agency. Anadolu Agency also reports that a Palestinian was killed by Israeli drone fire in northwestern Gaza despite the ceasefire, with others wounded in a separate airstrike on a residential building.
Sources: Al Jazeera, Middle East Monitor, Anadolu Agency, Anadolu Agency
China and Turkiye call for action on settlements
China's foreign minister urged Israel to halt what he called the forced establishment of settlements in the occupied West Bank during meetings in Baku, according to Anadolu Agency and Middle East Monitor. Turkiye's parliament speaker separately told European counterparts in Rome that the international community cannot remain silent over Israel's violations of international law, Middle East Monitor reports.
Sources: Anadolu Agency, Middle East Monitor, Middle East Monitor
Nineteen nations condemn Colombia's Jerusalem embassy move
Turkiye and eighteen other countries issued a joint statement rejecting Colombia's decision to open an embassy in Jerusalem, Middle East Monitor reports. The foreign ministers expressed unequivocal rejection of the move, which critics say undermines the international consensus on Jerusalem's status pending a final resolution.
Sources: Middle East Monitor
Israeli raid in Jenin area injures and detains Palestinians
A Palestinian was injured after being beaten by Israeli forces during a raid on the town of Al-Yamun west of Jenin, Middle East Eye reports, citing the Palestine Red Crescent Society. Three young men, including relatives of former detainees, were also detained after forces raided several homes in the town.
Sources: Middle East Eye
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