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U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee visited the occupied West Bank on Saturday, calling Israeli settlers who carry out attacks against Palestinians “terrorists.”
“I know that's an uncomfortable word for some people, but when you try to create an atmosphere in which people feel uncomfortable living in their own homes, their children playing in their own lawns and yards, and people feeling that they're not safe and that they're not secure because of the behavior, the actions, and the intimidation of others, that's terrorism by any definition,” Huckabee said during a visit to Turmus Ayya, north of Ramallah in the central West Bank.
Huckabee, long known as a staunch supporter of Israel and settlers, toured the West Bank town, which is home to a large Palestinian-American community, and said he wanted to hear residents’ “legitimate grievances.”
During the visit, he met Palestinian-Americans and heard testimonies about the challenges they face in their daily lives, homes and properties amid settler violence.
Huckabee said Washington would continue to send the message that “people in these communities have a right to live with a level of security and safety.”
“The government has a responsibility to make sure that happens,” he said, referring to Israel.
As the ambassador met families inside a well-kept old house, a settler from a nearby illegal outpost approached on a quad bike.
“One of the messages that we have been sending and we will continue to send is that people in these communities have a right to live with a level of security and safety, and that the government has a responsibility to make sure that that happens,” Huckabee said.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, and violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinian residents has persisted for years, often with little or no legal consequence.
Recent months have seen a surge in attacks.
Huckabee stopped short of criticizing Israel by name but called for action against the violence, which he said was carried out by a small minority of settlers.
“Our clear message is that crime is crime, terror is terror. When people do it they should have an expectation that they will have severe consequences,” Huckabee said.
Despite his criticism of settler violence, Huckabee is known for adopting Christian Zionist views and has previously claimed that Israel has “the right to control large parts” extending from the Nile to the Euphrates and large areas of the Middle East.
His visit came amid a sharp increase in attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians across the occupied West Bank.
The U.N. said in August that settler violence had reached “unprecedented levels,” with more than 1,430 attacks resulting in casualties or property damage documented in 2026 as of early August.
Around 500,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank, which is home to about 3 million Palestinians.
In the run-up to Oct. 27 elections, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has ramped up approval of new settlements, which are illegal under international law.
Despite Huckabee’s dismissal of violent settlers as a minority, Netanyahu has brought far-right ministers into his government who have openly discussed expelling Palestinians.
Huckabee also denied that Israel was planning to force Palestinians out of Gaza, after Israeli ministers spoke of such a plan.
Incidents take place nearly daily, with settlers attacking Palestinians, seizing crops or livestock and seeking to force them off their land.
Speaking about settler violence, Huckabee said: “I think the Scripture is pretty clear—Thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not kill, and thou shalt not even covet.”
Huckabee earlier intervened when settler extremists camped out and blocked basic supplies from reaching another Palestinian-American in the town of Qusra last month, leading to rare condemnation of settlers by Netanyahu.
Huckabee, an evangelical Christian pastor and former governor of Arkansas, has long cited his faith to support Israel.
Before being appointed ambassador by Trump, Huckabee had declined to use the term Palestinian, which he now uses.
He continues to refer to the West Bank as Judea and Samaria, a biblical term used by Israel.
“The reason I use the terms Judea and Samaria is because they are the ancient biblical terms of this land. Eighty percent of the Bible happened in the area of Judea and Samaria. The West Bank is a nebulous term to me,” Huckabee said.
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