U.S. Representative Ro Khanna Briefly Delayed by Israeli Settlers in West Bank

U.S. Representative Ro Khanna was detained by Israeli settlers armed with M4 rifles while touring a destroyed Palestinian village in the southern West Bank on July 9. The incident occurred near Khirbet Zanuta, a hamlet whose residents had been displaced by prior settler raids.

Khanna's group had been viewing the remains of a school and other structures when settlers blocked the road and surrounded their van. The group was held for more than one hour. An aide, Cameron Kasky, said members contacted the U.S.

Embassy in Jerusalem for assistance. Israeli police officers eventually intervened and released the group. The Israeli military stated that troops and police dispersed the settlers after receiving a report of blocked vehicles and then allowed the vehicles to continue.

Khanna described the rifles as American-made and said the Israeli military sided with the settlers. Khanna visited Turmus Ayya, a village home to thousands of Palestinian American dual nationals, during the same trip. He said he is strongly considering a 2028 presidential run and is more resolved after the visit.

He was the second Democrat weighing a White House bid to travel to the region that week. U.S. military aid to Israel totals $3.8 billion per year. Israel's favorability rating among Democrats fell from 59 percent in 2018 to 22 percent in May, according to Reuters/Ipsos polling.

The West Bank has a population of about 3 million Palestinians and around 500,000 Jewish settlers.