US Ambassador Huckabee rejects the term ‘settler violence,’ says only hundreds involved in West Bank attacks

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has rejected the term “settler violence” to describe attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, claiming that only a few hundred individuals are responsible for such acts.

Speaking in an interview with Israel’s public broadcaster on Tuesday evening, Huckabee argued that the term unfairly characterises the wider Israeli settler population.

“I am careful to avoid the term ‘settler violence’; it is an inaccurate characterization that does not fairly represent all those living in Judea and Samaria,” Huckabee said, using the biblical terminology for the West Bank.

He estimated that those involved in violent incidents numbered no more than 400 to 500 people, adding that some did not live in West Bank settlements.

“The number of people causing trouble is no more than a few hundred—perhaps 400 or 500—and many of them do not even reside there,” he said.

Despite rejecting the broader terminology, Huckabee condemned attacks against civilians and called for accountability.

“This type of crime and terrorist activity should not be tolerated,” he said.

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The ambassador added that he had urged Israeli authorities to impose sanctions and punish perpetrators regardless of their nationality.

“I have urged the Israelis to impose sanctions and punish the perpetrators fairly, regardless of whether the person who committed the crime is Israeli or Palestinian,” he said.

Approximately 750,000 Israeli settlers live in 156 settlements and 360 outposts across the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, according to figures cited in the report.

Since October 2023, Israeli military operations and settler attacks against Palestinians and their property have intensified across the West Bank.

Reported incidents include killings, arrests, the demolition of homes and other structures, the burning of mosques and vehicles, damage to agricultural land, restrictions on farmers’ access to their fields, and the displacement of Palestinian residents.

Settlement expansion has also continued amid concerns over the future status of the occupied territory.

Palestinians warn that the combination of settlement expansion, displacement and restrictions on Palestinian communities could facilitate the formal annexation of the West Bank.

They argue that such developments would further undermine prospects for establishing an independent Palestinian state in accordance with relevant United Nations resolutions.

Huckabee’s remarks come amid continuing scrutiny of settler attacks and calls for greater accountability for violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.

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