Israeli settlers attack Deutsche Welle journalists covering Sinjil protest in West Bank

Israeli settlers attacked a crew of journalists from German broadcaster Deutsche Welle in the town of Sinjil, north of Ramallah, in the West Bank on Friday.

The journalists, who were in the Palestinian town to report on a planned protest against violence by Israeli settlers, were unharmed in the ordeal. However, the a belonging to one of the journalists sustained some damage.

Peter Limbourg, the German broadcaster’s director, condemned the attack in a statement on Saturday.

"This attack cannot be justified by anything, and we demand quite clearly that the Israeli government must guarantee the safety of all journalists in the West Bank," stressing that "freedom of the press is an indispensable fundamental pillar of any democracy," he said.

Germany’s ambassador to Israel also denounced the attack. Steffen Seibert said in a statement on X: "Reports of a violent attack by settlers on international journalists, including a German correspondent, are extremely worrying. Freedom of the press and the safety of journalists must be guaranteed. In view of the continuous rise in extremist settler violence, the work of journalists is of paramount importance."

The attack comes despite the German news website being accused by critics of having a pro-Israeli bias, as well as an anti-Palestinian one.

Germany’s repression of pro-Palestinian activism amid the military onslaught has been subject to heavy criticism by Palestinian activists worldwide.

Settlers attack Sinjil

Israeli settlers on Friday disrupted the protest by Sinjil’s residents against the Israeli attacks on nearby farmland in the West Bank town.

The settlers threw rocks from a hill at the Palestinian protesters, injuring at least three people, including one man the settlers attempted to kidnap. He was later rescued by Palestinians.

Not only does Sinjil suffer from threats of settlement expansions-  Israeli forces erected in June a metal gate at the town’s northern entrance, blocking the main road leading to and out of the town – effectively cutting off Sinjil from surrounding areas.

Sinjil is now surrounded by two iron gates and a perimeter fence that has been in place for several months, severely restricting the movement of its residents.