U.S. Calls for Israel to Probe ‘Terrorist’ Killing of American in West Bank

The Israel Defense Forces announced on Friday that they were aware of reports regarding a Palestinian civilian who had been killed, along with several Palestinians who had sustained injuries. They mentioned that Israeli authorities were currently investigating the matter.

According to police statements to NBC News, individuals from “both sides” were detained at the location under suspicion of participating in violent activities. A joint investigation was initiated by the Israel Police and the IDF Military Police.

When asked for an update on the investigation on Wednesday, the IDF reiterated that the probe was being conducted by the Israel Police and the Military Police Criminal Investigation Division. However, the Israel Police were unavailable for immediate comment when reached for their response.

A spokesperson for the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Musallet’s killing comes amid a deadly rise in settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. A United Nations report in March warned that violence had “increased in a climate of continuing impunity.”

Hundreds of thousands of Israeli settlers live in sweeping settlements across the West Bank that the international community widely considers to be illegal.

More than 960 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank since the Hamas led attacks on Israel from Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023, according to a database maintained by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), marking a sharp increase from previous years.

In the year leading up to the Hamas attacks, just over 250 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank according to OCHA’s data.

Settlers rarely face legal consequences for violence against Palestinians, according to Yesh Din, an Israeli human rights group, with more than 93% of investigations between 2005 and 2023 closed without an indictment and only 3% leading to a conviction, according to a report it published last year.