The Israeli military near a house that came under settler attack in the Palestinian village of Qusra in the West Bank on Aug. 29, 2026. Ammar Awad/Reuters
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered a fresh statement of condemnation on Aug. 29, after new clashes near a pair of Palestinian communities in the West Bank.
“I strongly condemn the criminal acts of violence committed in the villages of Qusra and Jalud by a handful of rioters who are violating the law, causing a grave injustice to the law-abiding Jewish community, interfering with the [Israel Defense Forces] in carrying out its missions, and harming Israel’s standing in the world,” Netanyahu said in a statement posted on X.
The Israeli prime minister’s statement came amid reports that masked Israeli individuals had surrounded homes in the Palestinian West Bank village of Qusra, leading to a violent confrontation.
NBC News reported that one of its crews was also working in the nearby Palestinian village of Jalud when they were caught in another violent confrontation on Saturday. The media organization said its crew was in the process of interviewing a Palestinian woman when masked men drove up in a car, jumped out, and attacked them.
NBC News said its correspondent Matt Bradley was hit twice in the arm and was later treated at a nearby clinic.
The Epoch Times reached out to the Israel Defense Forces for comment on the alleged attack on the NBC News crew. In response, the Israeli military offered a general statement about the violent incidents in Qusra and Jalud, but did not specifically mention the reported attack on the NBC News crew.
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“IDF soldiers and Israel Border Police forces were dispatched to the area of Qusra following reports that Israeli rioters had arrived in the area and that violent clashes had occurred, including stone-hurling toward Palestinians and additional civilians,” Israel’s military said. “Upon their arrival, the security forces identified dozens of rioters who had barricaded themselves inside a Palestinian home while Palestinian residents were inside.
The Israeli military said it worked to remove the Israeli rioters from the Palestinian residence, and confiscated multiple vehicles they believe the rioters used to reach the village.
“The vehicles, along with additional evidence collected at the scene by the security forces, are being transferred to the Judea and Samaria District of the Israel Police as part of the police investigation that has been opened,” the Israeli military said.
On Aug. 12, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee condemned the Israeli settlers involved in the Qusra confrontations as “terrorists” and their actions “criminal.”
Following the renewed confrontations on Saturday, Huckabee hailed the response by Netanyahu and other members of the Israeli government. Huckabee called on the Palestinian Authority to similarly condemn attacks by Palestinians on Israeli citizens.
“It’s wrong whoever does it!” Huckabee wrote in a post on X.
The West Bank remains a point of frequent contention in the decades-long Israeli–Palestinian conflict.
Israeli forces seized control of the West Bank in 1967, and the Israeli government has continued to administer the territory to varying degrees in the ensuing decades. In that time, Israeli nationals have gradually expanded settlements throughout the territory, with the chances of an eventual contiguous Palestinian state remaining an open question.
While supporters of an independent Palestinian state see the West Bank as a key territorial claim, opponents cite security concerns that such a state would become a launchpad and breeding ground for terrorism.
