Former Israeli air force intelligence chief Yoel Feldshuh was detained on Monday after intervening in a settler attack on Palestinian women harvesting olives near Duma, south of Nablus, in the occupied West Bank.
Feldshuh, 77, had joined a group of retired senior security officials and activists helping Palestinians with the harvest.
According to Commanders for Israel’s Security, the movement to which he belongs, settlers arrived and attacked Palestinian women, prompting members of the group to intervene. According to its mission statement, the movement aims to form "an agreement" with Palestinians based on the 1967 borders for a two-state solution.
המשטרה עצרה ליד הכפר הפלסטיני דומה את תא״ל (בדימוס) יואל פלדשו, לשעבר מנכ״ל אל-על, לאחר שקבוצה של כ-15 קצינים בדימוס, כולל אלופים כמו אייל בן ראובן וההסטוריון הצבאי פרופ׳ אורי בר יוסף, סייעו לפלסטינים המקומיים במסיק הזיתים. על פי תיאור עדי ראיה, התקרית התרחשה אחרי שהמסיק הסתיים. אחת הנשים בקבוצה עשתה דרכה עם שק זיתים לכיוון הטנדר עליו הועמסה הסחורה. לפתע תקף אותה מתנחל צעיר באלימות. הנוכחים בלמו אותו והפרידו ביניהם. כעבור זמן, הגיעה המשטרה ועצרה שני פעילים בקבוצה, ביניהם תא״ל פלדשו. מצ״ב: סרטון המעצר
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"Members of the group stood up to defend and prevent the attack. Instead of arresting the rioters, the forces arrested Feldshuh and another activist," the movement said in a statement reported by Israeli media.
Israeli police gave a different account, saying two Israelis were detained on suspicion of assaulting a shepherd near Duma. The Israeli activist group Looking the Occupation in the Eye said a settler had attempted to attack two Palestinian women carrying sacks of olives, then called police and soldiers after activists pushed him away.
Feldshuh was released after questioning on condition that he leave the area. Police also detained a 15-year-old Jerusalem resident on suspicion of involvement in the incident, releasing him under restrictive conditions, according to Israeli media. It's unclear if the person in question was the settler involved in the attack.
A retired brigadier general, Feldshuh previously headed the Israeli Air Force’s intelligence wing and served as chief executive of Israeli airline El Al from 1996 to 2000.
His detention comes amid escalating Israeli settler attacks during the olive harvest, a crucial source of income for Palestinian farming communities. Israeli settlers have assaulted harvesters, stolen crops and equipment, and destroyed olive trees across the occupied West Bank in recent days.
The violence has drawn activists to accompany Palestinian farmers, help them harvest and document attacks. These "protective presence" efforts seek to support Palestinians’ access to their land, though volunteers and journalists have also come under attack.
On Monday, activists and journalists also gathered near the Neve Daniel settlement, south of Jerusalem, after settlers circulated a call to "Stop the Harvest" and prevent Palestinians from reaching their farmland.