From the Liveblog of
Monday, January 26, 2026
Italy summons Israeli ambassador after Italian police held at gunpoint in West Bank
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleItaly has summoned Israel’s ambassador to protest after two Italian policemen were threatened at gunpoint by an Israeli during a field visit in the occupied West Bank, the foreign ministry says.
The two carabinieri officers, stationed at Italy’s consulate general in Jerusalem, “were stopped in Palestinian territory, near Ramallah, probably by a ‘settler’ under the threat of an automatic rifle,” a foreign ministry statement says.
According to a government source, an Israeli, believed to have been a settler, forced the two men to kneel at gunpoint and subjected them to an improvised interrogation.
The soldiers were travelling in a vehicle with diplomatic license plates and carrying diplomatic passports.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani wanted the Israeli ambassador in Rome to receive a “strong protest” over the incident, the foreign ministry says in a statement.
Italy’s embassy to Israel has already submitted a formal protest to the Israeli government, contacting the foreign ministry, the Israeli military, the police, and the Shin Bet domestic security agency.
The two policemen returned unharmed to Italy’s consulate general in Jerusalem following the incident.
The Times of Israel Community.