Photo: ILIA YEFIMOVICH / AFP / Getty Images
NBC News foreign correspondent Matt Bradley and his team are recovering after an attack by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank. The incident occurred over the weekend when Bradley and his team were interviewing an elderly Palestinian woman, Aida Ahmed Abdullah, in the town of Jalud, near Nablus. The team was attacked by masked men who emerged from a car with Israeli license plates, wielding sticks and throwing rocks.
Bradley reported that all team members "took hits" during the attack, but they are now safe and recovering in Tel Aviv. Abdullah was knocked unconscious and received medical care from the Red Crescent. Her injuries are not life-threatening, though she remains in the hospital, according to her husband, Mahmoud Toubasi.
The attack has drawn condemnation from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee. Netanyahu described the violence as "criminal acts" and emphasized that such behavior harms Israel's international standing. He urged security forces to apprehend the perpetrators and bring them to justice. The Israeli military has launched an investigation into the incident.
The attack on the NBC team is part of a broader pattern of violence in the region. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, between January 1 and July 24, Israeli forces or settlers killed 76 Palestinians, while three Israelis were killed during the same period. The West Bank, captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war, is home to 3 million Palestinians and 500,000 Israeli settlers.
The recent escalation in violence has increased pressure on the Israeli military to address these issues. Both the United Nations and media organizations have reported a rise in attacks on journalists in the West Bank. The Israeli government has been criticized for allegedly turning a blind eye to settler violence, though they have publicly condemned all forms of violence.
For more details, visit the full report on NBC News.