The U.S. envoy to Israel strongly criticized Jewish settlers for besieging the residence of an American Palestinian family in the Israeli-controlled West Bank. Mike Huckabee labeled the siege as a “horrific act of terror.” Local authorities and relatives reported that since Sunday, settlers have congregated near the home in Qusra village, harassing the occupants and resisting Israeli military attempts to resolve the situation.
A group of several dozen men has engaged in activities such as hurling stones, trying to breach a nearby stone wall, and preventing the family from leaving despite limited supplies. Loui Ridi, the homeowner, revealed that his 48-year-old brother and nephew, who were defending the house, were stranded without food or water for days.
On Thursday morning, the owner’s brother, Qusai Abu Rida, disclosed that he and his teenage son were evacuated by the Israeli military. The fate of the property and another targeted house remains uncertain. Israeli forces have recently intervened to restore order, dismantling “two illegal outposts” and detaining an Israeli individual. Additional troops have been deployed to conduct defensive operations and patrols in the vicinity, approximately 16 kilometers from Nablus.
Reporters near Qusra observed road closures leading into the village. Palestinians and the Israeli opposition have accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government of ignoring settler assaults on Palestinians amid escalating clashes in recent years. Huckabee’s sharp criticism on social media was unusual for a U.S. official, although he supported the Israeli military’s response. Home security footage depicted a few settlers lingering near a damaged stone wall close to the house.
Ridi recounted months of harassment by settlers before the recent escalation, including cutting off water and electricity, pelting stones, and causing property damage to his house and others in the area. “We are essentially prisoners in our own home,” he lamented.
In a separate incident, a mosque in Qusra was set ablaze in an apparent settler attack last month, following the killing of an Israeli settler that triggered deadly violence. Settlers continue to establish additional outposts, a move criticized by the international community for undermining hopes of a Palestinian state in the West Bank. Palestinians aspire to include the West Bank, seized by Israel in the 1967 war, in their future state, while many settlers argue for Israeli sovereignty over the entire region based on historical, religious, and security considerations.
