The illegal Israeli outpost of Givat Ronen overlooks the Palestinian Huwara Secondary School, where an Israeli flag reportedly placed on the school's roof by Israeli settlers was removed and the Palestinian flag restored by the school in Huwara, south of the city of Nablus in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on March 23, 2026. (Credit: Jaafar Ashtiyeh/AFP)
An international media association on Saturday condemned what it described as a "violent assault" by Israeli soldiers who detained a CNN crew in the Israeli-occupied West Bank this week.
A CNN team was reporting on the aftermath of an assault by Israeli settlers and the establishment of an illegal outpost near the Palestinian village of Tayasir on Thursday when it was detained by Israeli soldiers, the Foreign Press Association (FPA) said.
"The soldiers aggressively targeted the crew and Palestinian civilians present, pointing their rifles at them," the FPA said, even after the journalists identified themselves.
"The soldiers repeatedly tried to infringe the CNN crew's right to film, ordering the crew to stop filming and threatening to confiscate the camera.
"Later, an IDF soldier approached CNN's photojournalist from behind, placed him in a chokehold, slammed him to the ground, and damaged his camera," said the association, which represents hundreds of journalists in Israel and Palestinian territories.
CNN confirmed the details in its own report on the incident, identifying the photojournalist as Cyril Theophilos.
"This was not a misunderstanding... It was a violent assault on clearly identified journalists and a direct attack on press freedom," the FPA said.
"The use of force was excessive and dangerous. Pointing rifles at journalists and civilians, physically assaulting a cameraman, and detaining a crew are actions that cross every line.
"Such behavior reflects a deeply alarming pattern of hostility toward the media and cannot be tolerated under any circumstances," the FPA said, demanding an investigation into the incident.
The Israeli military said the incident will be probed. "I apologized privately, and I will say it again — this shouldn’t have happened. Our job is to maintain law and order, among that is allowing for freedom of the press," wrote military spokesman Nadav Shoshani on X.
The incident is the second such event involving CNN this month.
Days ago, during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, a CNN producer was left with a fractured wrist following an "unprovoked assault" by Israeli police officers.
That incident happened when journalists were documenting worshipers praying outside the walls of the Old City in east Jerusalem.
Violence in the West Bank has continued unabated even after the October 2025 cease-fire in Gaza, and since the outbreak of the current war in the Middle East, there has been a fresh spate of deadly attacks by Israeli settlers.
An AFP journalist sits on the FPA board.
