Israeli police arrested 10 suspects on Monday as part of an investigation into a wave of settler violence in the occupied West Bank over the weekend. The arrests follow attacks targeting a Washington Post photojournalist and European diplomats.
The targeted incidents included an attack on a convoy of European diplomats, which included the French mayor and the French and Belgian consuls general in Jerusalem. Additionally, settlers are accused of attacking journalists and a group of Palestinian olive pickers. These events took place during a spike in settler violence coinciding with the annual Palestinian olive harvest season.
The human rights group Yesh Din has reported at least 170 settler attacks since September 27. While the United States and Europe have called for a crackdown on such violence, rights groups claim that most inquiries into extremist assaults on Palestinians go nowhere.
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee described the arrests as a very positive development. Israeli police have not yet identified the suspects or specified their roles in the attacks.