Washington Post photojournalist Heidi Levine was hospitalized Friday after she was beaten by Israeli settlers in the West Bank, with disturbing video showing her bloodied on the ground and telling those around her, “I’m going to die.”
Levine was covering the annual Palestinian olive harvest in Abu Falah, near Ramallah, when dozens of masked settlers swarmed the area, setting olive trees on fire and throwing rocks at villagers, according to Reuters witnesses.
Video shared online by independent journalist Jasper Nathaniel showed Levine sitting on a dirt road moments after the reported attack, as people around her urged her to get away.
“They took everything,” Levine said of her equipment. “They took all my stuff.”
When asked if she was OK, Levine answered, “No,” before repeating, “I’m going to die.”
As people filming and helping her repeatedly told her to run during a further attack by the settlers, Levine could be heard saying she “can’t.” Several men eventually carried her away, with blood visible on her hands and body.
A separate clip captured the moment Levine was surrounded by settlers and thrown to the ground.
According to Reuters, roughly 80 settlers moved into the olive groves as Palestinian families gathered for the harvest. Some carried gas canisters, while others used slings to launch rocks. At least one armed settler was seen firing a gun.
Israeli military vehicles arrived during the violence, Reuters reported, but the attack did not stop. Soldiers reportedly fired tear gas toward Palestinians who had moved away from the approaching jeeps.
Levine later spoke from her hospital bed, her left hand wrapped in a bandage.
“I was attacked, pushed to the ground. Luckily I had my flak jacket and helmet, otherwise I probably wouldn’t even be here, because they just kept kicking me and kicking me,” she told Reuters.
She said Palestinian colleagues eventually stepped in and helped get her to an ambulance. She was then transferred to a hospital in Ramallah and was reportedly in stable condition.
Levine has spent years covering the West Bank for The Post, documenting the expansion of Israeli settlements and rising attacks on Palestinian communities.
Earlier this month, she shared a byline on the paper’s report about an AFP photographer who was beaten by settlers while covering the same olive harvest.
The Washington Post later released a statement on X from executive editor Matt Murray, who said Levine was wearing visible markings clearly identifying her as a journalist when she was attacked.
Murray said the paper was relieved that Levine had received medical care and was safe, but outraged by what he called an unwarranted attack on a journalist doing her job. He urged authorities to conduct a thorough investigation and follow through.
In a statement to Mediaite, Murray stressed that the safety of the paper’s journalists is of paramount importance, along with the right of journalists everywhere to report freely and the duty of authorities to protect them.
He said The Post will press for an investigation and support Levine following what he described as a shocking attack.
Murray also thanked the paper’s security team, its photography team led by Robert Miller and Olivier Laurent, and its International and Middle East teams for their response and support, adding that The Post will share further updates when appropriate.
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