With Macron and his friend and ally Netanyahu, the settlers found the road wide open — Bernard Baudoux, mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries, 78, beaten in Taybeh, in occupied Palestine

N. Rochat — Genève, Suisse — 2026-10-18

The facts, first. On Saturday, 17 October 2026, in Taybeh — a predominantly Christian village in the occupied West Bank — masked Israeli settlers attacked a French, Belgian and Polish diplomatic convoy. Their target: Bernard Baudoux, 78, the communist mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries in northern France, who had come to sign a cooperation agreement and, symbolically, to take part in the olive harvest. “They arrived completely unhinged,” he recounted: thrown to the ground, struck, beaten with iron bars. He was wearing his tricolour sash.

The French response is unambiguous. Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot demanded that “those responsible for these revolting acts be arrested without delay” and be “brought to justice.” Belgium, one of whose vehicles was damaged, condemned “in the strongest terms” this attack “perpetrated by masked settlers.”

And Netanyahu's? A mirror accusation. The Prime Minister's office denounced “a coordinated campaign aimed at defaming Israel and the Jewish residents” of the West Bank. It criticised the diplomats for not coordinating their movements with the army, and recalled that Mr Baudoux was “a known communist supporter of the Palestinian cause.” Translation: the victim is guilty, the crime is a “smear.”

And Macron, meanwhile? A 78-year-old French mayor, tricolour sash around his neck, is thrown to the ground and beaten with iron bars in the occupied West Bank. What does the President of the French Republic do? His foreign minister demands that “those responsible be arrested without delay.” Words. While Netanyahu talks of a “smear campaign” against France, Paris does not raise its voice, does not recall its ambassador, demands nothing binding. Macron, who fancies himself Europe's great diplomat, lets his elected officials be beaten without raising his voice. When you are Netanyahu's “friend,” you do not defend France — you defend silence. A French mayor beaten, and France lowers its eyes. That is the price of inaction.

This was not an isolated incident. The day before, settlers had seriously wounded Heidi Levine, an American photographer for the Washington Post, breaking her vertebrae. The previous week, they had beaten AFP photographer Jaafar Ashtiyeh. And a priest from Taybeh recounted that settlers had attacked the olive pickers: “one person hit in the head needed stitches, they also beat an elderly woman.”

The picture, unvarnished. More than 1,100 Palestinians killed in the West Bank since 7 October 2023, the majority by Israeli soldiers. More than 500,000 Israeli settlers living in settlements that are illegal under international law, alongside some three million Palestinians. And settler violence “rarely followed by a serious investigation or prosecution,” according to NGOs — impunity as a system.

What it really says. When settlers beat a 78-year-old French mayor wearing the tricolour flag, when they break the vertebrae of an American photographer, when they drive farmers from their olive trees — and the government speaks of “smear” — it is no longer a conflict, it is a confession. Former Israeli chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot, a rival of Netanyahu, said it better than us: “Jewish terrorism, under the auspices of the government,” which “is consuming what little legitimacy remains to the State of Israel.” This time, the world saw. Even European diplomats are not spared.

📚 COMPLETE BIBLIOGRAPHY (rule no. 19)

1. AFP, “Israeli settlers attack European diplomats, beat French mayor,” 18 October 2026 — https://www.afp.com/en/israeli-settlers-attack-european-diplomats-beat-french-mayor

2. RTL Infos (with AFP), “Cisjordanie : des colons israéliens attaquent un convoi diplomatique européen et frappent un maire français,” 18 October 2026 — https://infos.rtl.lu/news/monde/des-colons-israeliens-attaquent-un-convoi-diplomatique-europeen-et-frappent-un-maire-francais-1673552777

3. VRT NWS, “Belgische consul getuigt over aanval door kolonisten op Westelijke Jordaanoever,” 18 October 2026 — https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/nl/2026/10/18/belgische-consul-geweld-israelische-aanval-westelijke-jordaanoev/

4. Video (subject of the article): “Scandal en Palestine : des diplomates français attaqués par des colons israéliens” — https://www.youtube.com/shorts/p1uSHHI4oMw

⚠️ Published reservations. (1) The facts are reported by AFP and witnesses; the Israeli investigation is ongoing. (2) The statements by Eisenkot and Netanyahu are quotations, not characterisations by the newspaper. (3) The term “Jewish terrorism” is the exact quotation of an Israeli official, not a term chosen by the editorial team.