US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on Israel to take tougher action against violent settlers in Judea and Samaria, following attacks on a Washington Post photographer and European diplomats near Ramallah that have drawn mounting international pressure on Jerusalem.
Speaking to reporters in Washington before departing for Uzbekistan, Rubio addressed footage of the violence that emerged over the weekend. "We're very disturbed by those images and what we're seeing," Rubio said. "We've asked the Israelis and continue to ask them to crack down on that stuff."
Rubio said the State Department had sought information about Friday's attack on Heidi Levine, 64, an American photojournalist working for The Washington Post. He added that he expected to receive answers from the US Embassy in Jerusalem by Sunday.
Levine and another person were injured and taken to a hospital after being attacked by settlers near Khirbet Abu Falah in the Binyamin region, northeast of Ramallah, while she was documenting attacks on Palestinians. "As a mother, I can't understand how a parent can raise monsters like these," Levine said after the assault. "They're not even humans. And, yes, they are Jewish terrorists, and they are giving everyone in the country a horrible reputation."
The following day, seven masked settlers armed with clubs attacked Palestinian olive harvesters and diplomats from Belgium, France and Poland near the village of Taybeh, close to Ramallah. A French mayor was assaulted during the incident, and a window of a Belgian consular vehicle was smashed.
Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot condemned the attack, declaring that "Impunity for violent settlers must end. Belgium will continue to press for EU sanctions against those responsible for this violence and those who support them," he added.
