A cover photo for L’Espresso’s April 10 issue has become the focus of a diplomatic dispute between Israel and Italy. The image, titled “L’Abuso” (Abuse), shows an armed Israeli soldier grinning as he films a Palestinian woman with a frightened expression. The contrast between the man’s grin and the woman’s fear prompted sharp reactions.
The magazine’s caption accuses the Zionist right of turning “Greater Israel” into reality, listing actions including annexation of the West Bank with soldiers colluding with settlers, devastation of Gaza, advances into Lebanon, border violations in Syria, war with Iran, and “ethnic cleansing and massacres.”
Israel’s ambassador to Italy, Jonathan Peled, condemned the cover as manipulative and warned it could fuel stereotypes. On X, he said the image “distorts the complex reality with which Israel must coexist, promoting stereotypes and hatred,” and in later posts claimed the photo was AI-generated. L’Espresso and the photographer rebutted those claims.
The photo was taken by Italian photojournalist Pietro Masturzo while documenting life under Israeli occupation. Masturzo says the shot was made in the Palestinian village of Idhna, west of Hebron, on 12 October 2025, the first day of the olive harvest. He described a group of armed Israeli settlers, some wearing army uniforms, arriving with real soldiers (faces covered) and preventing Palestinians from picking olives. Masturzo said the settler’s gesture mimicked the sound a shepherd makes to gather his flock, addressing Palestinians as if they were his animals.
The cover’s publication comes as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni recently suspended the automatic renewal of a defence agreement with Israel, citing disagreements over Israel’s military actions in Lebanon and wider regional developments. The photograph has therefore become both a journalistic and a diplomatic flashpoint.
