Khanna Accuses Israeli Military of Lying Over Settler Detention
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- Ro Khanna was stopped by armed Israeli settlers for 20 minutes while traveling to a Palestinian village in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday; the standoff stretched past an hour and was only resolved after he contacted the US embassy in Israel.
- Israeli Ambassador Michael Leiter blamed Khanna for the episode, saying he failed to coordinate with Israel, and speculated without evidence that Khanna delayed releasing his video to distract from his backing of Senate candidate Graham Platner, who dropped out Friday over sexual misconduct allegations.
- Khanna accused the Israeli military of "lying," telling NBC that settlers brandished M4 rifles, kicked the van's tires, laughed at the group, and videotaped them, while soldiers joined in blocking the road.
- Pro-Israel figures including Rep. Greg Murphy and former US envoy David Friedman dismissed the incident as a publicity stunt; conservative commentator Tucker Carlson defended Khanna and attacked US Ambassador Mike Huckabee for saying nothing.
- Israeli settlers have previously killed two US citizens in the West Bank — 20-year-old Sayfollah Musallet, beaten to death last year, and Chicago father of five Khamis Ayyad — with no suspects charged in either case.
- Israel is the largest cumulative recipient of US military aid at over $21bn in the past two years and was added to the US visa waiver program in 2023, despite documented settler violence against Americans.
Why it matters: A sitting US congressman was held by foreign armed civilians wielding American-made rifles while that country's military watched, and his own ambassador stayed silent — a concrete breakdown in diplomatic protection that contrasts sharply with the $21bn+ in US military aid flowing to Israel and the visa-free travel Israelis receive.
