Trump backs Netanyahu as US urges action on settler violence

US President Donald Trump endorsed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on October 18 ahead of Israel’s October 27 election, even as Washington pressed Israel to act against violent settlers following an attack on an American journalist in the occupied West Bank, RT reported.

In a Sunday Truth Social post, Trump offered Netanyahu his “Complete and Total Endorsement” and praised his wartime leadership. Netanyahu responded by thanking the US president for his support and their cooperation.

The endorsement followed public criticism from Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee over the reported assault on photojournalist Heidi Levine. Their statements called for action against the perpetrators without withdrawing political support for Netanyahu.

Washington demands action after journalist attack

Speaking to reporters in Maryland on October 17, Rubio said US officials were disturbed by images of the assault and had repeatedly asked Israel to confront such violence. “We’ve asked the Israelis, and continue to ask them, to crack down on that stuff,” he said. Rubio added that Trump did not want a crisis in the West Bank.

Huckabee separately condemned the attack in a post on X, describing it as an act of terror and calling for an investigation, arrests and prosecution. That characterisation was the ambassador’s assessment, rather than a reported judicial finding.

Levine was reportedly attacked on October 16 near Abu Falah while documenting the Palestinian olive harvest. According to a Washington Post account cited in the report, Israeli settlers knocked her to the ground, took her equipment and repeatedly kicked her despite her wearing a protective vest identifying her as press. The account said she suffered four broken vertebrae and a broken rib.

The same account alleged that Israeli soldiers were present but did not intervene. No Israeli military response to that allegation was included in the report.

Diplomats also targeted as violence rises

A separate incident on October 17 reportedly involved masked Israeli settlers attacking a convoy carrying European diplomats near Taybeh, a predominantly Christian Palestinian village in the West Bank.

UN officials were quoted on October 16 as saying settler attacks had reached their highest level since 2006. They cited more than 1,600 incidents between January and August 2026. The report did not identify the underlying UN release or explain how incidents were counted.

Settlement approvals have also expanded. Israeli watchdog Peace Now was cited as putting approvals for new West Bank housing units at nearly 11,000 this year. That figure concerns authorisations, not homes reported as completed.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has championed settlement expansion, with support from National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. Both are important members of Netanyahu’s governing coalition. The report did not establish their involvement in either of the reported attacks.