On August 13, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee denounced the actions of Jewish settlers besieging the home of an American Palestinian family in the Israeli-occupied West Bank as a 'horrific act of terror'. The family, residing in the village of Qusra, has been harassed by settlers since August 9, with the group throwing stones, attempting to bring down a stone wall, and preventing the occupants from leaving. The home's owner, Lou Ridi, stated that his brother and nephew had been unable to leave the house and did not have access to food or water for several days. Israeli troops intervened, evacuating the brother and nephew on Thursday morning. The military also dismantled two illegal outposts and detained one Israeli. Huckabee's statement was a sharp rebuke from a US official, even as he defended the Israeli military's response. The incident is part of a larger surge in clashes between settlers and Palestinians in recent years, with Palestinians and the Israeli opposition accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government of turning a blind eye to settler attacks.
The situation in Qusra has been escalating, with settlers building more outposts in the area. Last month, a mosque in Qusra was set on fire in an apparent settler attack, following the killing of an Israeli settler that triggered violence leaving two Israeli soldiers and four Palestinian villagers dead. Huckabee, a longtime ally of Israel's settler movement, has expressed support for Israeli control over the occupied West Bank while condemning settler violence. His post on social media included evidence of the Israeli military removing illegal trespassers from the area.
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📰 Source: Siasat Gulf