Yet another propaganda campaign, orchestrated by the far-left and boycott organizations, is gaining traction within Israeli media outlets. Over the weekend, left-leaning channels circulated dramatic reports claiming that “diplomats from France, Belgium, and Poland”—who had arrived for an olive harvest near the village of Taybeh in the Binyamin region—were attacked by Jewish residents. They further reported that, in the wake of this incident, Belgium is already calling for the imposition of sanctions against Israel.
However, a quick investigation into the event and the individuals involved reveals a carefully orchestrated scenario designed to capture a single image: a Jew committing an assault—all to inflict diplomatic damage upon the State of Israel. The most “prominent” figure in the incident—and the only person alleged to have been attacked—is Bernard Baudoux, the mayor of Aulnoye-Aymeries in northern France. Baudoux, who arrived in the Binyamin region accompanied by anarchists from the far-left organization “Torat Tzedek” (Torah of Justice), is known as a staunchly anti-Israel figure.
A brief online search reveals that Baudoux is a member of the French Communist Party (PCF)—a party that maintains an extreme anti-Israel stance, openly advocating for boycotts and sanctions against Israel, as well as an arms embargo. In the past, he even stirred controversy in France by officially hoisting the ‘Palestinian’ flag atop the town hall under his administration. This raises the question: how is an individual with a declared anti-Israel history permitted to enter Israel in the first place, only to engage in provocations on the ground?
Furthermore, an examination of footage from the scene shatters the narrative disseminated in the media. In the published clips, the anti-Israel mayor does not appear to be under attack at all; rather, he is seen lying on the ground, feigning injury—even before the Jewish youths arrived at the location.
Moreover, contrary to claims regarding an “ATV pursuit of the diplomats’ vehicle,” the only vehicle blocked in the footage belongs to far-left activists Amit Orfali and Roni Federman. The two can even be heard speaking in the background of the very footage they claimed credit for—a fact that did not stop them from rushing to the media to report that the delegation had been attacked. The reason the event was not coordinated in advance with the IDF is entirely transparent: the activists sought to prevent security forces from reaching the site and preemptively neutralizing the planned provocation.
Although the incident has not yet been investigated by the Israel Police, the IDF was quick to issue a condemnation, while clarifying that “the tour was not coordinated through the proper channels.”
Meanwhile, Democrats party leader Yair Golan—true to form—was quick to jump on the bandwagon, calling to “fight Jewish terror just as one fights ‘Palestinian’ terror”—thereby unreservedly adopting the narrative of the Left and anti-Israel organizations.
Ultimately, anyone who echoes these reports using the framing presented by far-left organizations is merely serving as a tool for an anti-Israel propaganda campaign—and not a particularly effective one at that.