U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee is a longtime supporter of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and has controversially suggested that Israel has a biblical right to the territory and much of the Middle East. But Huckabee has been forced to confront the disturbing violence surrounding the expansion of settlements in the Palestinian territory, an issue that’s been a growing problem in recent years but has reached record levels in 2026, according to the United Nations.
As Israeli settlers besieged Palestinian homes in the village of Qusra, including one belonging to a Palestinian American, Huckabee in mid-August referred to those involved as “Israeli terrorists.” This was a notable response from Huckabee given his staunch backing of settlements and given that the Trump administration typically reserves the term “terrorist” for groups like Hamas.
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee is a longtime supporter of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and has controversially suggested that Israel has a biblical right to the territory and much of the Middle East. But Huckabee has been forced to confront the disturbing violence surrounding the expansion of settlements in the Palestinian territory, an issue that’s been a growing problem in recent years but has reached record levels in 2026, according to the United Nations.
As Israeli settlers besieged Palestinian homes in the village of Qusra, including one belonging to a Palestinian American, Huckabee in mid-August referred to those involved as “Israeli terrorists.” This was a notable response from Huckabee given his staunch backing of settlements and given that the Trump administration typically reserves the term “terrorist” for groups like Hamas.
The Qusra siege, which is ongoing, is part of an apparent effort by settlers to force the Palestinian residents of those homes to flee. Israeli forces have intervened, but the situation is far from resolved and is indicative of broader trends in the West Bank that have led top rights groups to accuse the Israeli government of fomenting settler violence.
Huckabee, an ordained Southern Baptist minister, suggested in an interview with Reuters last week that attempts by settlers to seize land or homes belonging to Palestinian Americans in the occupied West Bank represents a “violation of God’s law.” Pulling from the Ten Commandments, Huckabee said, “Thou shalt not steal” and that people shouldn’t “covet” the property of others.
“If someone owns the land and they own their house, then having someone come and take it over and scare the family away from it, that’s a violation, not just of man’s law. That’s a violation of God’s law,” Huckabee said.
That was a remarkable statement from Huckabee, which could be perceived as being at odds with many of his stances on the occupied West Bank and settlements. Huckabee has long referred to the West Bank as “Judea and Samaria,” employing the biblical name for the territory also used by the Israeli government. But after being confronted with a dangerous, violent situation in the West Bank that directly impacted a U.S. citizen, Huckabee invoked the Bible against Israeli settlers attempting to seize more land.
Still, this does not appear to represent a fundamental shift in Huckabee’s stance on settlements. He has also said that those involved in the Qusra siege come from “a very small minority” in Israel and shouldn’t be associated with other settlers. But the situation is emblematic of the difficulties that the Trump administration is increasingly facing in its relationship with the Israeli government during a volatile time in the region.
“Ambassador Huckabee’s recent characterization of those engaged in violence against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank as ‘Israeli terrorists’ is accurate. He may have used Biblical allusions to address the perpetrators in language they might understand,” Dan Shapiro, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel, told Foreign Policy.
“That said, the Trump administration needs to demonstrate much more determination to pressure the Israeli government to shut down this violence. They seem to want to avoid a clash with [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu ahead of the Israeli elections,” Shapiro said.
“[Netanyahu] actively permits [Itamar] Ben-Gvir and [Bezalel] Smotrich, the extremist ministers in his cabinet, to ignore, encourage, and even facilitate this violence,” Shapiro added, referring to the Israeli national security and finance ministers, respectively. “Besides being immoral and cruel, it undercuts U.S. interests and many things [U.S. President Donald] Trump says he wants to achieve in the Middle East, from Gaza stabilization to expanding the Abraham Accords.”
The Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Israeli settlements in the territory are considered illegal under international law. Netanyahu has rejected the notion that settlements are illegal, and his government has been accused of emboldening extremist settlers through a range of policies and actions—including by approving a controversial plan to build more settlements in the E1 area of the West Bank.
The international community has increasingly raised alarm bells over this move. European Union foreign-policy chief Kaja Kallas warned in a statement on Sunday that the E1 plan “would divide the West Bank in two” and further erode “the viability of a two-state solution,” noting that these “developments take place as the West Bank experiences further instability and record levels of settler violence.” Kallas said the EU urges the Israeli government to “halt its E1 plans as well as all other settlement expansion projects, and ensure accountability for settler violence.”
The Trump administration has said that it does not support Israel annexing the West Bank, but critics have accused the White House of enabling violent settlers with its policies. On the first day of his second term, for example, Trump rolled back Biden-era sanctions on West Bank settler groups and individuals. Huckabee has suggested that settlers involved in the Qusra siege could face U.S. sanctions. When asked whether Trump would back such steps or if he’s considering any other actions to address settler violence, a White House official said on background, “A stable West Bank keeps Israel secure and is in line with this administration’s goal to achieve peace in the region.”
The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem and State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
