US Ambassador Huckabee Condemns West Bank Killing as Terrorist Act

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee condemned the killing of 20-year-old Palestinian-American Sayfollah "Saif" Musallet, who was beaten to death by Israeli settlers in the West Bank town of Sinjil. Huckabee called the attack a "criminal and terrorist act" and urged Israel to aggressively investigate the incident and ensure accountability. Musallet, a Florida resident visiting family, was reportedly trying to defend his family's land when settlers surrounded him and blocked medical aid for hours, leading to his death. His killing is part of a broader surge in extremist settler violence in the West Bank amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, which has also claimed the life of another Palestinian man during the same incident. Though Huckabee has historically supported Israeli settlements and annexation of the West Bank, his strong denunciation of this violence marks a rare official rebuke. Musallet’s family has called for a U.S. investigation, but such a move is seen as unlikely due to reliance on Israeli authorities who rarely prosecute settler violence cases.