Prominent Democratic US Representative Ro Khanna from California has alledged that he and a group of fellow Americans were unlawfully detained by armed Israeli settlers during a visit to the occupied West Bank.

Khanna stated that a group of men brandishing American-made M4 rifles blocked a road outside a small village near Khirbet Zanuta, shouting profanities at them. The Silicon Valley congressman further accused the Israeli military of complicity, asserting that when soldiers from the Israel Defense Forces arrived at the scene, they sided with the settlers and maintained the blockade for 90 minutes until calls to the US Embassy and Israeli police finally secured their release.

The Israel Defense Forces swiftly issued a statement denying any military involvement in blocking the delegation, counter-claiming that troops were dispatched immediately upon receiving reports of civilians blocking foreign nationals and members of the media.

According to the IDF, arriving soldiers actively dispersed the settlers and reopened the road rather than taking part in the detention.

Khanna emphasized that the tense 90-minute standoff highlighted the severe daily sense of powerlessness experienced by Palestinians living under the occupation, reflecting a broader surge in West Bank settler violence documented by the United Nations since late 2023.