US Envoy Calls Settler Siege on Palestinian Home a 'Horrific Act of Terror'

The US Ambassador to Israel has condemned the actions of Jewish settlers who have been besieging the home of a Palestinian-American family in the occupied West Bank, calling it a "horrific act of terror."

Mike Huckabee's remarks came as local officials and family members reported that settlers have been gathered near the home in the village of Qusra since Sunday. The group, which has included dozens of men, has reportedly thrown stones, attempted to dismantle a nearby stone wall, and prevented the occupants from leaving.

Lou Ridi, the home's owner, spoke to reporters by phone from Ohio. He said his 48-year-old brother and nephew had been trapped inside the house for days without access to food or water. On Thursday morning, his brother Qusai Abu Rida and his teenage son were evacuated by Israeli forces.

The Israeli military said it had dismantled two illegal outposts on the outskirts of Qusra and a nearby village, detaining one Israeli. Troops have been surged to the area to carry out defensive missions and patrols. Roads into the village have been closed.

Ridi said settlers had been harassing his family for months, cutting off water and electricity and throwing stones that damaged his property and at least one other home. "We are prisoners in our own house, hostages in our own house," he said.

The incident follows a recent attack on a mosque in Qusra and a broader surge in settler violence that has drawn criticism from Palestinians and the Israeli opposition, who accuse the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of tolerating such actions.

Huckabee's statement is notable as he has historically been a strong supporter of Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The Palestinians seek the territory, captured by Israel in 1967, as part of a future state.