Mourners carry the body of Palestinian-American Nasrallah Muhammad Abu Siam, 19, February 19, 2026, who was allegedly shot by settlers, during his funeral in the West Bank village of Mukhmas, east of Ramallah. (Photo by JOHN WESSELS / AFP)

US avoids condemning settler killing of Palestinian-American in armed West Bank attack

Asked for comment on killing of 19-year-old Nasrallah Abu Siam in settler attack, US State Department says it has ‘no higher priority’ than safety of Americans, is ‘monitoring’ situation

by · The Times of Israel

US President Donald Trump’s administration said Saturday that it was “aware of” the settler killing of a Palestinian-American in the West Bank a few days earlier, but avoided condemning the attack.

Asked for comment on the Wednesday killing of 19-year-old Nasrallah Abu Siam in an armed settler attack on the central West Bank Palestinian village of Mukhmas, a US State Department spokesperson asserted the administration “has no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans.”

”We are aware of the death of an American citizen in the West Bank,” the spokesperson continued. “We are closely monitoring the situation and stand ready to provide consular assistance.”

“Out of respect for the privacy of the family and loved ones during this difficult time, we have no further comment at this time,” the statement added.

The Trump administration has largely avoided commenting on settler violence in the West Bank. The rare exceptions have come in incidents involving US citizens, though that did not appear to be the case this time.

Mukhmas residents cited by the Kan public broadcaster said Abu Siam was shot when some 30 masked settlers, some of them armed, raided Palestinian barns and stole 380 head of livestock, as Palestinian shepherds tried to fend off the settlers. In addition to Abu Siam, four Palestinians were wounded in the attack.

The Haaretz newspaper cited one eyewitness as saying the settlers surrounded Abu Siam after he was shot, “hit him with clubs and stones, and almost killed him. They acted like animals — there was no humanity in them.”

Soldiers who arrived on the scene “watched them and did nothing except hurl tear gas at us. It was awful,” the person said, adding that the military ordered Palestinians to leave the barns.

In response to a query, the IDF said troops were dispatched to Mukhmas on Wednesday “following a report of rioting and violent confrontations that included stone-throwing,” and that later, “another force arrived at the scene and used riot dispersal means to restore order.”

The military said it later received reports of gunfire by “suspects” that resulted in several Palestinians being wounded.

Abu Siam was the first person killed by Israeli settlers in the West Bank in 2026, and the 37th since the Hamas-led onslaught of October 7, 2023, according to the PA’s official news agency WAFA.

Posters with the name and picture of Palestinian-American Nasrallah Abu Siam, 19, who according to the Palestinian Authority health ministry was shot by settlers, are seen during his funeral in the West Bank village of Mukhmas, east of Ramallah, February 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)

He was also at least the sixth American citizen to be killed in the West Bank by Israeli forces or settlers since October 7, 2023. American-born teenagers Tawfic Abdel Jabbar and Mohammad Khdour were killed in early 2024 by Israeli fire while driving in the West Bank. In April 2025, 14-year-old Amer Rabee, a New Jersey native, was shot in the head at least nine times by Israeli forces, according to his father.

In July 2025, two Palestinian-Americans were killed in separate settler attacks: 20-year-old Saif Musallet was beaten to death while visiting family in the town of Sinjil; 41-year-old Khamis Ayyad, from Chicago, died from smoke inhalation after settlers allegedly set his West Bank home on fire.

Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, in a rare direct condemnation, demanded Israel investigate Musallet’s killing, calling it a “criminal and terrorist act,” but Israeli authorities still have not arrested anyone in connection to the case.

Haleema Ayyad, mother of slain Palestinian-American Khamis Ayyad, holds a mobile phone with her son’s photo at the family house in Silwad, east of Ramallah, July 31, 2025. (AP/Nasser Nasser)

Settler attacks have spiked since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, which sparked the war in Gaza.

The settler attacks, which occur on a near-daily basis, largely go unchecked.

Prosecutions of Jewish extremists are rare, and convictions are even rarer. Critics have accused the government, described as the most hardline in Israel’s history, of shrugging off the attacks.

Data published by the IDF and Shin Bet security agency last month showed a 27 percent rise in settler attacks in 2025 compared to the previous year.