U.S. ambassador visits Palestinian town amid rise in occupied West Bank settler violence

U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee denounced Israeli settler violence in the West Bank on Saturday, branding their actions as "terror" during a visit to the village of Turmus Ayya. The ambassador referred to the settlers as "terrorists," a term typically reserved for Palestinian militants. "If there are squatters that come in and put up their own flags and take possession of something that does not belong to them, if they burn a car, if they torch a mosque, if they go into someone's home and vandalize it, paint graffiti on the walls, that's a criminal act. But it extends beyond a criminal act. It's an act of terror," Huckabee declared.

Huckabee's comments followed weeks of unrest in the West Bank, with attacks becoming more frequent since the war in Gaza erupted in October 2023. The United Nations humanitarian office reported a surge in such attacks during this period. Last month, Huckabee also used the term "terrorists" in reference to settlers involved in unrest in the town of Qusra, where they surrounded homes, including one owned by a Palestinian American.

In Bazariya, a village in the West Bank, residents reported that settlers burned a mosque and left a Hebrew graffiti message on the wall that read "Huckabee regards from the terrorists." The ambassador expressed relief at the admission of the settlers' actions, but emphasized that they represent a "tiny minority." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had previously condemned the actions of a "handful of rioters," while the foreign ministry described the settlers' behavior as a "disgrace."