Israeli forces move against settlers who have besieged Palestinian homes in the West Bank near Qusra, north of Nablus, prompting unusually strong U.S. criticism. Residents say settlers have blocked access to basic supplies, including food, water and electricity, since Sunday, including at least one home owned by a Palestinian American.
The U.S. ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, issues a rare and direct condemnation, calling the settlers “terrorists” and characterizing their actions as a criminal act and an “act of terror,” after the U.S. requested Israeli security forces remove the perpetrators. Israel’s military says it disperses the settlers, though some may remain, as reported by several outlets.
Outlets also note the timing of the incident alongside Israel’s inauguration of a prominent settlement elsewhere in the West Bank. While coverage largely agrees on the siege, the troop response, and the ambassador’s language, they differ in emphasis—some foreground the scope of the U.S. rebuke, while others focus on the blockade conditions and Israel’s operational response.
