The North American Committee of the International Press Institute (IPI-NAC) vigorously and unequivocally condemns the cowardly and unprovoked beating of Washington Post photographer Heidi Levine on October 16 by a group of masked Israeli settlers in the West Bank.
The IPI-NAC demands that the government of Israel holds the attackers accountable for their crimes, which have resulted in Levine’s hospitalisation after she suffered kicks, punches, and lacerations.
The young men who repeatedly struck and kicked Levine and stole her camera and phone were part of an apparently organised mob of assailants ambushing Palestinians attempting to harvest olives, according to fellow journalists and witnesses at the scene, and corroborated by video evidence.
A veteran photojournalist working and living in Israel for more than two decades, Levine was covering the event when she was overtaken and thrown to the ground.
“Respected by fellow journalists and by people on both sides of the Palestinian and Israeli divide, Levine for many years has dedicated herself to covering the region,” said IPI-NAC co-chair John Daniszewski. “She is courageous, fair, and even handed as she seeks to tell the story. Few know the terrain and the people as well as her.”
Violence against all journalists working in the region is unacceptable, and the IPI-NAC looks forward to a serious investigation from Israeli authorities in response to this outrage.