US ambassador to Israel calls American's death in West Bank a ‘terrorist act'
Israeli settlers beat Sayfollah Musallat to death last week in the village of Sinjil, to the north-east of Ramallah, according to his family and the Palestinian Health Ministry.
In a post on X, Mr Huckabee said he had urged the Israeli government to 'aggressively investigate' Mr Musallat's death. 'There must be accountability for this criminal and terrorist act,' he wrote.
The Israeli embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Mr Musallat's family claim that settlers and Israeli military blocked aid from reaching him for several hours. His younger brother was eventually able to carry him to a waiting ambulance but Mr Mussallat died before reaching the hospital.
'We are devastated that our beloved Saif Musallat was brutally beaten to death in our family's land by illegal Israeli settlers who were attempting to steal it,' the family said.
Another Palestinian was killed in the attack and 10 wounded.
Settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank has been on the rise since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on southern Israel.
Former president Joe Biden's administration imposed economic sanctions against certain settlers and groups to try to dissuade them from committing violence against Palestinians, but President Donald Trump scrapped the sanctions shortly after taking office.
Mr Huckabee, an evangelical preacher and former governor of Arkansas, is an avid supporter of Israel and often refers to the West Bank by its biblical name, Judea and Samaria.
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