ABU FALAH, West Bank
\nClad in black and their faces masked, dozens of militant Israeli settlers burned olive trees \u200band threw rocks at Palestinians in a coordinated attack on Friday on a village\u2019s harvest in the Israeli-occupied West Bank that injured at least two people, including a journalist.
\nSome 80 settlers, \u200csome of them carrying gas canisters, descended from a hill above a terraced olive grove where villagers from Abu Falah had gathered to pick ripe fruit, a cherished annual tradition in Palestinian life, Reuters witnesses said.
\nThe settlers took positions in front of the terraced lanes of olive trees. Some of them used slings to launch rocks towards Palestinian villagers, who descended towards the bottom of the hill before picking up and throwing stones to defend themselves.
\n\u201cThe settlers want to attack us and force us from our \u200bhomes,\u201d said Moutaz Abdelhadi, 42, a farmer who witnessed the attack in Abu Falah. Partway through the attack, at least two Israeli military jeeps sped through the area, kicking up dust as villagers ran \u200bout of their way.
\nThe attack continued after the military\u2019s arrival, with Israeli soldiers firing tear gas in the direction of the Palestinians who had dodged the jeeps. The sound of live gunfire could be heard in the area, and a Reuters photographer saw at least one armed settler fire a gun.
\nIn a statement, the Israeli military said soldiers and border police fired what it \u200bdescribed as warning shots after deploying to the area and at one point fired towards a person who the troops believed had posed a threat.
\n\u201cAttempts to incite friction between populations undermine security in the area,\u201d the military said. \u201cAttacks \u200band violence against innocent civilians are grave and unacceptable,\u201d it added.
\nWASHINGTON POST JOURNALIST INJURED
\nPalestinian medics said two people were injured and taken to hospitals in the area of Ramallah. One of them was Heidi Levine, an American photojournalist with the Washington Post. Video of the attack showed Levine lying on her side on a dirt path with her hands over her face as at least three settlers surrounded her.
\nSpeaking from a hospital bed later, Levine, who is in stable condition, said: \u201cI was attacked, pushed to \u200bthe ground. Luckily I had my flak jacket and helmet, otherwise I probably wouldn\u2019t even be here, because they just kept kicking me and kicking me.\u201d
\nLevine said the attack ended when her Palestinian colleagues intervened, after which \u200bmedics rushed her in an ambulance to a clinic in Abu Falah and then to hospital in Ramallah.
\nHer voice shook as she spoke, and she had bandages over her left hand. The Washington Post later reported she suffered lacerations across \u200cher body and \u2060a broken rib, and would need surgery on one hand after a finger was ripped open, exposing bone.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ABU FALAH, West Bank Clad in black and their faces masked, dozens of militant Israeli settlers burned olive trees \u200band threw rocks at Palestinians in a coordinated attack on Friday on a village\u2019s harvest in the Israeli-occupied West Bank that injured at least two people, including a journalist. Some 80 settlers, \u200csome of them carrying […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":572862,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-572851","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n