Israeli soldiers echo settler ideology, talk of revenge after targeting Palestinians and detaining CNN crew in the West Bank

2026-03-28 - 08:40

Twelve hours after Israeli settlers brutally attacked several Palestinians and established a new illegal outpost in their village, the Israeli military stepped in. But instead of detaining settlers or dismantling the illegal outpost, the soldiers targeted the Palestinian residents of Tayasir and a CNN team covering the incursion. “Stop! Sit down! Sit down!” one of the Israelis shouted, his rifle aimed directly at us and the Palestinians we were speaking with. Seventy-three seconds later, one of the soldiers came up from behind CNN photojournalist Cyril Theophilos and put him in a chokehold, bringing him to the ground and damaging his camera. Within minutes, we and several Palestinians in the area were detained by the soldiers. The two hours we spent detained by them laid bare the settler ideology motivating many of the soldiers who operate in the occupied West Bank – and the ways in which soldiers frequently act in service of the settler movement. Their comments build on a large body of evidence documented by journalists, activists and Palestinians that show Israeli soldiers supporting or standing idly by as Israeli settlers attack Palestinians or encroach on their land. One Israeli soldier, who identified himself as Meir, acknowledged that the settler outpost he was protecting in Tayasir is illegal under Israeli law, which deems established settlements legal in contravention of international law. “But this will be a legal settlement,” Meir said. “Slowly, slowly.” Asked if he is helping make that a reality, he responded quickly: “Of course ... I help my people.” Meir was describing the settler playbook: establish outposts on Palestinian land, count on protection or inaction from Israeli soldiers and eventually secure a government decree legalizing the outpost. The current Israeli government – the most right wing in the country’s history – has legalized dozens of such outposts since Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Meir and another soldier – the one who assaulted Theophilos – repeatedly declared that all of the West Bank belongs to Israel and the Jewish people, echoing the language of far-right government ministers. They also described all Palestinians as terrorists and spoke of revenge. An Israeli soldier points a gun at CNN’s Cyril Theophilos. Cyril Theophilos/CNN The soldiers said they were friends with Yehuda Sherman, an 18-year-old Israeli settler whom Israeli authorities say was killed by a Palestinian driver who rammed his ATV. Palestinians in the area dispute that account and say Sherman was trying to steal sheep from Palestinians. “If you had a brother and they killed him, what would you have done?” one of the soldiers asked. We responded, “So that’s revenge?” “Revenge,” Meir replied. Asked whether it was normal for soldiers to carry out revenge, he said: “Listen, at the end of the day, if the state doesn’t address what they did – those who murdered the youth ... what do you expect us to do?” Settler violence skyrocketed after Hamas’ October 7 attack, powered by a dangerous mix of revenge and Israeli government action to expand settlements in the West Bank. The attacks – which are increasingly described as Jewish terrorism by Israeli human rights activists and journalists – have spiked again in recent weeks amid the war with Iran, which has consumed public attention. The Israeli military told CNN: “The actions and behavior of the soldiers in the incident are incompatible with what is expected of IDF (Israel Defense Forces) soldiers operating in the Judea and Samaria area.” The military said the incident will be “thoroughly reviewed,” but did not respond to CNN’s questions about the settler outpost featured in this report or the increase of settler violence in the West Bank. Abdullah Daraghmeh, victim of an Israeli settler attack, with his son. Cyril Theophilos/CNN ‘The camera is my only weapon’ Lying in his hospital bed, Abdullah Daraghmeh is a testament to that violence: the 75-year-old is bloodied and bruised, his face swollen by the brutal assault that fractured his skull, multiple bones in his face and knocked out his teeth. His family and multiple eyewitnesses in Tayasir said settlers stormed his home in the middle of the night and beat him. Sami Daraghmeh said he found his father bloodied in his bed. “He was asleep,” his son said. “This is not normal.” The settlers stormed Tayasir in the early hours of Thursday morning, according to residents, firing guns into the air and beating multiple Palestinians. By daybreak, a new outpost had been established in the village. “This is my house and I don’t dare sleep in it,” resident Imad Dabak said, overlooking the new outpost, which is near his home. “I am taking my children and going away tonight.” Israeli soldiers at a Palestinian home in the West Bank. Cyril Theophilos/CNN The military, he said, has shown it is unwilling to remove the settlers from the outpost. If the settlers come back, he said, his only recourse is to record them. “If they come, I will just hold my phone and film ... I can’t push them or touch them – I will be taken to the police and imprisoned if they don’t kill me,” Dabak said. “The camera is my only weapon – it’s the only thing that can prove that I am innocent.”