US officials want to visit ‘besieged’ Palestinian town; IDF general warns ‘rioters’ are harming anti-terror work

The United States is seeking to send a delegation of senior officials to the Palestinian town of Qusra in Judea and Samaria (West Bank) to assess conditions following a days-long “siege” by radical settler activists around two homes. The standoff has led to several days of clashes with the Israeli military, which evacuated an illegal outpost but has struggled to prevent the activists from returning.

The Israeli general responsible for the area reportedly warned on Sunday that dealing with the ongoing situation in Qusra, and multiple other hotspots in Judea and Samaria, caused by settler activists is distracting the military from its fight against Palestinian terrorism.

Channel 12 News reported that the U.S. wants senior Israeli defense officials to join the tour and explain their side of the story, including how they plan to combat the growing phenomenon of violence by Israeli Jews against Palestinians in the area.

U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee has harshly condemned the situation in Qusra, even calling the activists “terrorists” while distinguishing between “troublemakers” and the broader settlement movement, whose leaders have joined in the condemnation.

The U.S. reportedly pressured Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to issue a statement as well, although he has remained silent so far.

As of Sunday, large numbers of IDF troops were stationed near the “besieged” homes to deter the activists from returning. The Israeli military successfully evacuated the tent erected at the access road to the homes, as well as a larger illegal outpost up the hill.

"Settlers" are not the problem in Judea/Samaria. "Unsettlers" are. Very small minority who do great damage to Palestinian families & to Israel. Real settlers like Ysrael Ganz, Governor of Judea/Samaria condemn the actions of the few. Let's hope the media gives attention to this…

— Ambassador Mike Huckabee (@GovMikeHuckabee) August 13, 2026

However, Channel 12 reported that only one activist had been detained so far, while police complained that, despite receiving “dozens of photos” of suspects involved in the violence from the military, they lacked evidence of the alleged crimes sufficient to establish a legal basis for arrest.

Israel's intelligence agency Shin Bet is reportedly also working to compile evidence to be able to charge the suspects.

According to Times of Israel’s Palestinian Affairs reporter, Nurit Yohanan, the IDF was conducting patrols to prevent the return of the activists.

Residents told her that they are afraid they will return as soon as the soldiers leave, however, and that the military had also prohibited them from leaving their homes due to the closed military zone order for the area.

On Sunday, representatives from the United Nations delivered food and water to the residents of the homes, according to the Times of Israel.

Kan News reported on Saturday that activists had entered the yard of a private home and verbally confronted IDF soldiers there, before being removed. The next day, activists again approached the homes on foot and with ATVs.

חזל"ש להיעדר המתנחלים מהאזור - הם שוב נצפו pic.twitter.com/W2lUkm9crI

— Nurit Yohanan (@nurityohanan) August 16, 2026

Local resident Marmar Odeh told Kan, “The army and police are a few meters from here, at a besieged house. You can see them in civilian clothes walking around and maintaining a presence. Before the army entered the homes, the settlers were driving around in pickup trucks, on ATVs, with sheep and goats, and now they have driven them away.”

The report noted that the IDF had reinforced its troops in Qusra with another battalion, which was scheduled to deploy in the Gaza Strip, highlighting the additional strain on the IDF’s already stretched manpower.

IDF Maj.-Gen. Avi Bluth warned in a recent security discussion that “dealing with a bunch of rioters in Judea and Samaria prevents us from thwarting terrorism at a high level,” according to a report by Channel 13 News.

Bluth is the commander of the IDF Central Command, which is responsible for the Judea, Samaria and Jordan Valley region.

“Dealing with this group causes us to divert some of the resources intended for the fight against Palestinian terrorism,” Bluth warned. “Dealing with them prevents us from reaching a higher level of counterterrorism.”

IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir was reportedly present at the same discussion. Speaking to the political leadership, he stressed that “preventing escalation in the West Bank is currently a top security interest, as is strengthening the settlements.”

“We want to focus the existing manpower on fighting Palestinian terrorism. Unfortunately, the forces on the ground are being drawn into dealing with incidents of [Jewish] nationalist crime. This is a minority that does not represent the settlement movement, but it is a minority that draws far too much attention instead of dealing with counterterrorism.”

“We need to focus on Iran, Lebanon and Gaza. If there is a violent outbreak in the territories – it will divert all IDF forces,” Zamir reportedly warned.