US ambassador denounces settler siege as Israel dispatches troops

QUSRA, West Bank - Israeli forces intervened on Thursday (August 13) to dismantle a siege by rogue settlers who had blocked Palestinian homes, including one owned by a US citizen, in Qusra, near Nablus. The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, denounced the settlers' actions as "thuggish behavior" in a tweet on X, a platform for online messaging.

The Israeli military dispatched forces to the area the night before and demolished two outposts, detaining one Israeli settler. Witnesses reported that the settlers remained in the area, preventing food and supplies from reaching the besieged Palestinian families. The mayor of Qusra, Abdel Azim Wadi, stated that the Israeli military had issued temporary eviction orders for the Palestinian homes as it pursued the settlers.

This incident occurred shortly after Israeli officials, including Defense Minister Israel Katz, celebrated the reopening of another settlement in the northern West Bank, which had been dismantled over two decades ago. The US criticism of the siege is particularly significant, coming from Huckabee, a staunch supporter of settlers and evangelical Christian pastor.

The violence against Palestinians by Israeli settlers in the West Bank has surged since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack from Gaza.