Family of US-Palestinian beaten to death in West Bank seeks State Department probe

A US-Palestinian man has been killed in an Israeli settler attack in the occupied West Bank, his family said on Saturday, demanding that Washington launch a probe into his death.

Saif al-Din Kamil Abdul Karim Musalat was beaten to death on Friday in Sinjil, a village north of Ramallah, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Musalat, born and based in Florida, travelled to the West Bank last month to spend time with relatives, his family said in a statement issued by lawyer Diana Halum following the deadly attack.

The Palestinian health ministry said a second man, Mohammed Rizq Hussein al-Shalabi, 23, died after being shot during the attack and "left to bleed for hours".

Israel's military said violence flared after Palestinians threw rocks at a group of Israelis, lightly injuring two, the latest in a spate of clashes involving settlers in the West Bank.

Musalat's family said they were "devastated" at his death, describing the 20-year-old as a "kind, hard-working and deeply respected" man who was deeply connected to his Palestinian heritage.

They said he was "protecting his family's land from settlers who were attempting to steal it".

According to the family's statement, settlers blocked an ambulance and paramedics from reaching Musalat as he lay injured, and he died before making it to hospital.

His death was "an unimaginable nightmare and in justice that no family should ever have to face", they added.

"We demand the US State Department lead an immediate investigation and hold the Israeli settlers who killed Saif accountable for their crimes. We demand justice."

The US State Department on Friday said it was aware of the reported death of a US citizen in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

"We are aware of reports of the death of a US citizen in the West Bank," a State Department spokesperson said, adding the department had no further comment "out of respect for the privacy of the family and loved ones" of the reported victim.

Rising violence in the West Bank

Rights groups have denounced a rise in violence committed by settlers in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967. The UN has said such attacks against Palestinians are taking place in a climate of "impunity".

Last week, AFP journalists witnessed clashes between dozens of Israeli settlers and Palestinians in Sinjil, where a march against settler attacks on nearby farmland had been due to take place.

Israeli authorities recently erected a high fence cutting off parts of Sinjil from Road 60, which runs through the West Bank from north to south.

Violence in the territory has surged since the October 2023 attack on Israel by Palestinian militant group Hamas triggered war in the Gaza Strip.

Since then, Israeli troops or settlers in the West Bank have killed at least 955 Palestinians – many of them militants, but also scores of civilians – according to Palestinian health ministry figures.

At least 36 Israelis, including both troops and civilians, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or Israeli military operations, according to Israeli official figures.

US President Donald Trump in January rescinded sanctions imposed by the former Biden administration on Israeli settler groups and individuals accused of being involved in violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.

Israeli killings of US citizens in the West Bank in recent years include those of Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, Palestinian American teenager Omar Mohammad Rabea and Turkish American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi.

The UN's highest court said last year Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories, including the West Bank, and settlements there were illegal and should be withdrawn as soon as possible.

Israel disputes this, citing historical and biblical ties to the land. The West Bank is among the territories that Palestinians seek for an independent state.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP and Reuters)