Latest news with #American-Palestinian
L'Orient-Le Jour
19-07-2025
- Politics
- L'Orient-Le Jour
US envoy urges accountability for church attack in West Bank village
The U.S. ambassador to Israel on Saturday visited a Christian village in the occupied West Bank and urged accountability for an attack on an ancient church, which residents have blamed on Israeli settlers. In early July, the village of Taybeh was hit by an arson attack in the area of the ruins of the Byzantine-era Church of Saint George, which dates back to the fifth century. Residents blamed settlers for the assault, which comes as violence soars in the West Bank, and last week saw an American-Palestinian man killed near Ramallah. Ambassador Mike Huckabee, an evangelical Christian and staunch advocate for Israel, said his trip to Taybeh aimed to "express solidarity with the people who just want to live their lives in peace, to be able to go to their own land, to be able to go to their place of worship." "It doesn't matter whether it's a mosque, a church, a synagogue," he told journalists. "It's unacceptable to commit an act of sacrilege by desecrating a place that is supposed to be a place of worship." "We will certainly insist that those who carry out acts of terror and violence in Taybeh or anywhere be found, be prosecuted, not just reprimanded. That's not enough," he said. "People need to pay a price for doing something that destroys that which belongs not just to other people, but that which belongs to God." In the villages and communities around Taybeh, Palestinian authorities reported that settlers had killed three people and damaged or destroyed multiple water sources in the past two weeks alone. Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, and violence has surged in the territory since the Hamas attack of Oct. 7, 2023, triggered the Gaza war. Since then, Israeli troops or settlers have killed at least 957 Palestinians, including many militants, in the West Bank, according to health ministry figures. Over the same period, at least 36 Israelis, including soldiers, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or during Israeli military operations, according to official figures. Huckabee, who has for years been an outspoken supporter of Jewish settlement in the Palestinian territories, on Tuesday demanded an aggressive investigation and consequences after settlers beat to death a Palestinian-American in the West Bank. It was a sign of rare public pressure against U.S. ally Israel by President Donald Trump's administration.
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Family of US citizen beaten to death by Israeli settlers calls on Trump administration to prosecute killers
Relatives of Sayfollah Musallet, a US citizen from Florida beaten to death by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank, are calling for the Trump administration to arrest and prosecute those responsible for his killing. The 20-year-old from Tampa was visiting his family in an area near Ramallah, and died last week trying to protect their farm from invaders, they said at an emotional press conference in Florida on Monday afternoon. His uncle Hasem Musallet paid tribute to the 'loving, respectful' boy who loved baseball and had just opened an ice-cream business in Tampa with several of his cousins. He decried what the family saw as indifference from the US government over the murder of one of its citizens. 'Somebody needs to be held accountable,' he said. Related: Israeli settlers kill American-Palestinian visiting relatives in West Bank, says family 'He wanted to be a businessman ever since he was young. He was planning on expanding, finding a wife, having a family. That was his dream but it was cut short at 20 years old, cut short unjustly.' Musallet was beaten with clubs and bats, and died in the same attack that killed a 23-year-old Palestinian man. Razek Hussein al-Shalabi was shot and left to bleed to death, the Palestinian health ministry said. Hasem Musallet said the settlers prevented ambulances from reaching the injured men, and that a brother watched Sayfollah take his last breath. Hiba Rahim, deputy executive director of the Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (Cair), said Musallet's family wanted Donald Trump, and the departments of justice and state, to prosecute his killers under US law. She also condemned a statement from the state department that said it had no comment on Musallet's death 'out of respect for the privacy of the family and loved ones during this difficult time'. Rahim said: 'We're not asking, and his family is not asking, for silence. We're asking for accountability. 'If Sayfollah was killed by anyone else or in another country, there would already be investigations, there would already be attempts for arrest, and calls for arrest and outrage in Washington. 'Where is the outrage from our government? Where is the accountability?' Hasem Musallet broke down in tears as he remembered his nephew as 'just a very rare soul' who would help anybody in need. He said Musallet was on a trip with family members from Florida, and enjoying time in the mountains and barbecuing with friends in the West Bank in the days before his death. 'He was very loving, caring. Just like any other 20-year-old he would go out with his friends after work, he'd watch comedy, he'd go out driving, he'd go to the beach. He would come to my house always, and come to his grandmother and give her a hug and kiss her hand,' Hasem said. The Israeli military claimed the incident happened after stones were thrown at Israelis and that 'a violent confrontation developed' and said it was looking into the incident. Rahim dismissed this, saying: 'There were no clashes. These are the same lies we hear every time a guilty party is guilty of monstrous activity like what we saw with Sayfollah's death. 'This is not an isolated tragedy. There's a devastating pattern of Americans being killed in Israel, brutalized and murdered with impunity by Israeli forces and settlers.' Musallet's death is part of a growing wave of violence by Israeli settlers in the West Bank. Israeli forces and settlers have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in the territory and injured at least 9,000 since the Hamas attacks on Israel in October 2023. The Guardian has contacted the state department for further comment.
Middle East Eye
15-07-2025
- Middle East Eye
CNN crew attacked by Israeli settlers while reporting in occupied West Bank
CNN's Jerusalem correspondent Jeremy Diamond says he and his team were attacked by Israeli settlers while reporting in the occupied West Bank this week. Diamond had travelled to the area to interview the father of 20-year-old Saif Musallet, an American-Palestinian citizen and one of two Palestinians killed by Israeli settlers on Friday. 'As we were covering this story, my team & I were attacked by Israeli settlers. The back window of our vehicle was smashed, but we managed to escape unharmed,' he posted on X. He added: 'This is just a sliver of the reality many Palestinians face in the West Bank amid rising settler violence. Earlier this month two journalists from the German state broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) were attacked by Israeli settlers while reporting in the occupied West Bank. The correspondent and cameraman came under assault in the Palestinian village of Sinjil, north of Ramallah. They were covering a planned protest against mounting settler violence when a group of settlers hurled stones at them and chased them from the scene.
Memri
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Memri
American-Palestinian Activist Linda Sarsour: I Would Be Honored To Die A Martyr
American-Palestinian political activist Linda Sarsour said at a "Faith & Freedom Sunday" event held at the Community of Hope church in District Heights, MD that in Islam, one's day of death is already decreed when one is born, adding: "So the opposition don't got no power over my last day... In fact, I would be honored to die a martyr." Sarsour's speech was posted to the Hiphopenationtv YouTube channel on February 17, 2025. Linda Sarsour: "In Islam, we believe that when we are born, the day that we die is already decreed. So the opposition don't got power over my last day. So if I know that my day is gonna come regardless, I'm not afraid of nobody taking me out. In fact, I would be honored to die a martyr."
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Israel will not send delegation to Qatar after Hamas's request to change Witkoff proposal
An Israeli official said, however, that "negotiations have not stopped, efforts of the mediators still continue." Israel will not send a delegation to Qatar after Hamas requested changes to the US envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff's outline for a hostage deal, Israeli media reported Tuesday. An Israeli official said, however, that "negotiations have not stopped, efforts of the mediators still continue." Israel is making it clear that, despite Hamas' apparent "willingness" to continue negotiations, in practice, there is no change in the group's position, and that the gaps with the Witkoff proposal remain. Hamas's response does not include a serious reference to the Witkoff proposal and presents new demands that deviate greatly from the Israeli line, Israeli sources said. The additional demands include a ceasefire of up to seven years, a complete IDF withdrawal from the areas occupied since March, and the cancellation of the activities of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. "Israel has agreed to the Witkoff framework as proposed – that is the official position," a diplomatic source clarified. "Despite Hamas' statements, there has been no significant change." Sources in Israel added that Hamas's willingness to return to negotiations is seen as a purely tactical move designed to improve its international image. "This is not an answer - it is a slammed door. Hamas's response only distances us from an agreement," Witkoff said in response to Hamas's demands. The US, Qatar, and Egypt are continuing mediation efforts in line with the Witkoff proposal. However, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Ati held a phone call with Witkoff on Sunday that, according to Lebanese newspaper Al Akhbar, was significantly and noticeably tense, reflecting Egypt's growing concerns that the war in Gaza will become an open war of attrition. Egypt is concerned that the IDF's continued military activity, particularly in Khan Yunis, will result in a redrawing of the demographic map in the south of Gaza, and the gradual pushing of Palestinians towards the border with Egypt, posing a direct threat to the country's national security, Abdel Ati told Witkoff. Additionally, Abdel Ati reportedly did not hesitate to blame Washington for part of the failure of the negotiations, as well as criticizing the way the US administration is conducting the negotiations. Witkoff has asked American-Palestinian businessman Bishara Bahah to remain in Doha and continue talks with Hamas, in the hope that his presence will avoid a sense of finality or disconnect between the parties.
