CNN Journalist Put In Chokehold By IDF Soldiers

Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers put CNN photojournalist Cyril Theophilos in a chokehold before detaining him and a group of journalists.

The CNN team was interviewing Palestinians in the West Bank town of Tayasir when IDF soldiers pointed weapons at the group and detained them for two hours, CNN reported.

The crew was reporting on recent settler attacks on Palestinians, including one attack that left 75-year-old Abdullah Daraghmeh with a fractured skull, the outlet reported. (RELATED: Majority Of Republicans Say Israel Influences US Foreign Policy Too Much, Weeks Into Iran War)

Israeli settlers attacks – which are increasingly described as Jewish terrorism by Israeli human rights activists and journalists – have spiked in recent weeks amid the war with Iran, which has consumed public attention.

Lying in his hospital bed, Abdullah Daraghmeh is a… pic.twitter.com/ltJDxcp6Op

— Abeer Salman (@AbeerSalmanCNN) March 28, 2026

The attack comes amid a larger trend of Israeli settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. Last year marked a record high for settlement expansion since the United Nations began tracking settler activity, the BBC reported.

According to the Times of Israel, more than 500,000 Israelis live in West Bank settlements and outposts in addition to approximately 3 million Palestinians.

The Palestinian Authority’s Health Ministry announced Friday night that Israeli troops shot and killed three Palestinians in the West Bank over the previous day. One of the victims was 15-year-old Adham Dahman, the Times of Israel reported.

NEW: CNN photojournalist put in a chokehold by Israeli soldiers before the entire CNN crew was detained in the West Bank.

CNN says the crew was detained for two hours.

The Israeli military has released the following statement to CNN:

“The actions and behavior of the soldiers… pic.twitter.com/Kfas2sTu1W

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) March 28, 2026

“The actions and behavior of the soldiers in the incident are incompatible with what is expected of IDF soldiers operating in the Judea and Samaria area,” the IDF told CNN. (RELATED: Israel Targets Iranian Nuclear Program Yet Again, Officials Say)

The Israeli military added that the incident will be “thoroughly reviewed,” but did not respond to CNN’s questions about rising settler violence in the West Bank.