{"id":585142,"date":"2026-08-15T03:40:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-15T03:40:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/585142\/"},"modified":"2026-08-15T03:40:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-15T03:40:10","slug":"u-s-ambassador-calls-settlers-who-sieged-palestinian-homes-in-qusra-terrorists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/585142\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. ambassador calls settlers who sieged Palestinian homes in Qusra \u2018terrorists\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>(JTA) \u2014 TEL AVIV \u2013 The West Bank settlement movement\u2019s leadership joined with one of its most prominent defenders, U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee, in condemning an Israeli settler outpost set up in a Palestinian family\u2019s yard.\n<\/p>\n<p>Huckabee\u2019s remarks are a signal of the degree to which a group of radicals is rattling Israeli politics and the U.S.-Israel relationship.\n        <\/p>\n<p>Israelis affiliated with the West Bank\u2019s Tel Talpiot outpost, which is illegal under Israeli law, set up temporary structures at the entrances to Palestinian homes on the outskirts of the village of Qusra on Sunday.\u00a0\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p class=\"newsletter-promo\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/jewishchronicle.timesofisrael.com\/signup\/?utm_source=jewishchronicle-articles&amp;utm_medium=middle-link&amp;utm_campaign=signup-buttons\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGet The Jewish Chronicle Weekly Edition by email and never miss our top stories<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/jewishchronicle.timesofisrael.com\/signup\/?utm_source=jewishchronicle-articles&amp;utm_medium=middle-link&amp;utm_campaign=signup-buttons\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFree Sign Up<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>Earlier this week, cables connecting the homes to the electricity grid and to solar panels were cut, and water pipes were damaged, leaving the Palestinian families unable to leave or bring in food. Israeli activists in the area who monitor settler attacks on Palestinians confirmed the account to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.<\/p>\n<p>Huckabee <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/GovMikeHuckabee\/status\/2087736809069465867\" rel=\"nofollow\">wrote<\/a> on X on Thursday that Israeli forces had gone to Qusra at the U.S. Embassy\u2019s request and described the people who set up the outpost as \u201cIsraeli terrorists.\u201d He posted that \u201cthe IDF &amp; Israel Police have gone at our request to remove the Israeli terrorists doing this.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">This is another lie.  <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/usembassyjlm?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" rel=\"nofollow\">@usembassyjlm<\/a> has been VERY involved &amp; the IDF &amp; Israel Police have gone at our request to remove the Israeli terrorists doing this.  The actions of those doing this to this family\u2019s home is criminal.  The WH hasn\u2019t \u201cintervened\u201d because we have kept DC\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/qrfnCYcOtB\" rel=\"nofollow\">https:\/\/t.co\/qrfnCYcOtB<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Ambassador Mike Huckabee (@GovMikeHuckabee) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/GovMikeHuckabee\/status\/2087736809069465867?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" rel=\"nofollow\">August 13, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The language was a departure for the ambassador, who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jns.org\/huckabee-us-never-asked-israel-not-to-annex-judea-samaria\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">told<\/a> Israel\u2019s Channel 14 last September that the United States \u201crespects Israel as a sovereign state and will not tell Israel what to do\u201d regarding sovereignty in the West Bank. Huckabee has also consistently described the territory by its biblical names Judea and Samaria. He routinely takes to social media to dismantle what he says are lies depicting Israelis as unfairly treating Palestinians.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He has condemned settler violence before, but has rarely done so in language as blunt as what he used on Thursday. In July 2025, he visited the Christian village of Taybeh in the West Bank after an arson attack at its fifth-century church and called it an \u201cact of terror and crime.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The actions of Israeli settler extremists have been a major concern to Democrats in the U.S. Congress in recent months, adding fodder to their calls to condition aid to Israel on its behavior. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists the reports are overblown, and that Palestinian violence is much more serious. President Donald Trump, who has often supported Netanyahu, has called on the prime minister to crack down on the violence, seeing it as an impediment to his hopes for a broader Middle East peace. Huckabee\u2019s intervention suggests that the Trump administration is increasingly concerned about ending the violence.<\/p>\n<p>Yisrael Ganz, who chairs the Yesha Council and governs the Binyamin Regional Council, condemned the outpost.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe events in Qusra are serious and do not reflect our values or our way of conducting ourselves,\u201d Ganz said. \u201cThere is no place for individuals to take matters into their own hands and establish an outpost in someone\u2019s backyard, even when dealing with an illegal home or an attempt to seize control of the land. There is no justification whatsoever for violence against uninvolved civilians or security forces.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He added that some were \u201cexploiting these events as part of a campaign against the Jewish communities,\u201d but that this \u201cmust not obscure the simple truth: What happened in Qusra was wrong and is unacceptable to us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Huckabee amplified Ganz\u2019s statement later on Thursday, writing on X, \u201c\u2019Settlers\u2019 are not the problem in Judea\/Samaria. \u2018Unsettlers\u2019 are,\u201d he wrote, describing them as \u201cvery small minority who do great damage to Palestinian families &amp; to Israel.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">&quot;Settlers&quot; are not the problem in Judea\/Samaria.  &quot;Unsettlers&quot; are. Very small minority who do great damage to Palestinian families &amp; to Israel. Real settlers like Ysrael Ganz, Governor of Judea\/Samaria condemn the actions of the few. Let&#39;s hope the media gives attention to this\u2026<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Ambassador Mike Huckabee (@GovMikeHuckabee) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/GovMikeHuckabee\/status\/2087964441401028665?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" rel=\"nofollow\">August 13, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The village is located in Area B, territory that is under the civil jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority and security control of the Israeli military and where Israeli settlement is not permitted. The Israel Defense Forces called such takeovers illegal and reprehensible on Tuesday. Overnight Wednesday, Israeli security forces said they demolished the structures at Qusra and detained one Israeli.<\/p>\n<p>Marmar Odeh, a village representative, told JTA that the Israeli military remained inside Qusra, and footage circulating on social media showed Israeli soldiers stationed inside the homes of evacuated residents.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI won\u2019t be going anywhere. I am staying in my house and on my land,\u201d Odeh said. \u201cI may not be scared, but the children are all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In a voice memo recorded on August 12 and obtained by JTA, Aisha Abu Rida, a Qusra resident, spoke from inside one of the besieged homes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are surrounded by settlers, but we are steadfast,\u201d she said. \u201cDespite the water and electricity being cut off, we will remain steadfast \u2026 and stay in our homes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>By Thursday, the structures were gone, but settlers remained on the hillsides above the homes, Odeh said, an account supported by footage he provided to JTA. Soldiers had left most of the homes they had entered, residents said Friday, but were informed the military operation could last until Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>One of the affected homes belongs to Loui Ridi, a Toledo, Ohio, business owner who was born in Qusra and has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/from-ohio-a-palestinian-american-watches-as-settlers-besiege-his-family-in-qusra\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">followed the standoff<\/a> through security cameras installed at the property. JTA attempted to reach Ridi through several channels and was unsuccessful.<\/p>\n<p>Asked whether the State Department shared Huckabee\u2019s characterization and whether the Embassy had requested the Israeli operation, a State Department spokesperson did not directly reply. \u201cWe are in regular dialogue with partners about improving stability and security in the West Bank,\u201d the spokesperson said. \u201cWe condemn criminal violence by any party in the West Bank. A stable West Bank keeps Israel secure and is in line with this administration\u2019s goal to achieve peace in the region.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In a statement to JTA, the Israeli military said soldiers had been deployed in Qusra since Thursday morning \u201cto protect the residents and maintain security in the area\u201d and that they had been instructed that \u201cthe Qusra residents will remain in their homes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It added that troops would not operate inside the Palestinian family\u2019s home near the site \u201cwhere the tent that was evacuated and dismantled had been erected\u201d and said Civil Administration liaison officers were in contact with Qusra\u2019s local leadership and \u201cworking to avoid disruption to the daily lives of the residents in the area.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Footage circulating earlier in the week appeared to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ynet.co.il\/news\/article\/hyljb5duzl\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">show<\/a> Israeli soldiers praying alongside the settlers at the outpost. The military said that the incident is under review and that soldiers found to have taken part in illegal activity would be disciplined.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The designation of Area B is the source of the ambiguity, according to Hanan Greenwood, head of the spokesperson and public diplomacy unit at the Binyamin Regional Council.<\/p>\n<p>The council\u2019s jurisdiction covers the settlements themselves, Greenwood said, not Area B land, meaning Qusra sits inside the council\u2019s footprint but outside its authority. Its residents fall under Palestinian Authority civil jurisdiction and pay the council no arnona, the Israeli municipal tax.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGeographically, Qusra is very much in our area,\u201d Greenwood said. \u201cBut in real life, it\u2019s not that we could go there, and it\u2019s not that the residents of Qusra pay us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He described the result as a governance vacuum. \u201cIt\u2019s ours, it isn\u2019t ours,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a whole mess, and the reason is that there\u2019s no sovereignty.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Israeli rights groups reject that framing, arguing that the military has the authority to remove outposts and does not use it.<\/p>\n<p>The Israeli rights group B\u2019Tselem said the events reflect a broader pattern.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat is happening in Qusra is not an isolated incident,\u201d said Yuli Novak, the organization\u2019s executive director. \u201cSettler militias, backed by the Israeli military, are expanding their attacks into Palestinian villages and towns, seizing land, attacking homes and forcing families out. Israel\u2019s ethnic cleansing of the West Bank is accelerating and expanding in plain sight.\u201d PJC<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"(JTA) \u2014 TEL AVIV \u2013 The West Bank settlement movement\u2019s leadership joined with one of its most prominent&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":585143,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[85,46,43],"class_list":["post-585142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-israel","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/585142","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=585142"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/585142\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/585143"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=585142"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=585142"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=585142"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}