An unsettling encounter unfolded as an Israeli soldier placed a CNN journalist in a chokehold, detaining the entire news team in the West Bank.
This confrontation turned violent when photojournalist Cyril Theophilos was forcibly brought to the ground by Israel Defense Forces (IDF) personnel on Friday.
The incident occurred while the news crew was interviewing Palestinians who reported assaults by Israeli settlers near Tayasir.
During the interviews, IDF soldiers approached, wielding their weapons, and demanded the crew cease their activities, as captured on video.
“Stop! Sit down! Sit down,” one soldier reportedly commanded.
Jerusalem correspondent Jeremy Diamond recounted, “The soldiers just immediately approached, pointing their weapons directly at us, ordering everyone to sit down right away.”
As the crew tried to record the situation, one soldier smacked one of the crew’s phones out of his hand and demanded that their camera was switched off.
Theophilos was then placed in a chokehold and his camera was allegedly damaged.
A CNN news crew were approached by armed Israeli soldiers while interviewing Palestinians in the West Bank town of Tayasir
Then Cyril Theophilos, a photojournalist for the outlet seen above, was held in a chokehold by one of the armed soldiers and then brought to the ground
As the crew tried to record the situation, one soldier smacked one of the crew’s phones out of his hand and demanded that their camera was switched off
The team and the Palestinians were reportedly detained for two hours before the news crew was escorted back to their vehicle.
The Israeli Military told CNN that the incident would be ‘thoroughly reviewed.’
‘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,’ a spokesperson said.
The news team had been in the area interviewing Palestinians who had been reportedly attacked by Israeli civilians or ‘settlers.’
The rise in settler attacks on Palestinian villages along the West Bank, which are not always violent, coincide with the government continuing to expand settlements.
Locals in Tayasir said that the settler attack on Thursday morning saw 75-year-old Abdullah Daraghmeh left with fractured bones in his face and skull as well as knocked out teeth.
His family told CNN that settlers stormed in and beat Daraghmah, with his son Sami Daraghmeh saying that his father had been asleep.
‘This is not normal,’ he added.
‘The soldiers just immediately came up and started pointing their weapons directly at us telling everyone to sit down immediately,’ correspondent Jeremy Diamond told the camera
According to locals, the settlers had arrived in the early hours and began firing guns into the air and beating Palestinians before the new outpost was established by sunrise.
During the two hours that the CNN news crew were detained by the Israeli soldiers, the team reportedly heard the soldiers opinions on the controversial tactic.
An Israeli soldier, identified as Meir, acknowledged that the outpost he was protecting was illegal under Israeli law.
‘But this will be a legal settlement,’ he said. ‘Slowly, slowly.’
He was asked if he would help make the legality of the outposts a reality, Meir said: ‘Of course… I help my people.’
Meir reportedly said that the tactic involved the establishment of outposts on Palestinian villages with the hopes of little response from the Israeli soldiers and the eventual legalization from the Israeli government.
Currently, dozens of similar outposts have been legalized by the Israel government since Hamas’s attack on October 7 in 2023.
The group of soldiers were heard saying that all of the West Bank belonged to Israel and the Jewish people, while also describing Palestinians as terrorists and speaking of revenge.
