US congressman says ‘IDF is lying’ about his detention by settlers and soldiers
The Guardian – US News
theguardian.com
Summary
Israeli ambassador to US accuses Ro Khanna of political stunt to distract from support for Graham Platner Ro Khanna accused the Israeli government and military of “lying” on Sunday about the US congressman’s detention by armed settlers and Israeli soldiers during a recent visit to the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Khanna – a California Democrat – had posted video evidence on social media of Israeli settlers and soldiers blocking the path of his convoy on Wednesday in the South Hebron hills, near the village of Zanuta, where Israelis have driven Palestinians from their homes in what Amnesty International calls a government-backed “ethnic cleansing campaign”. During an interview with NBC News ’ Meet the Press on Sunday, the California Democrat was asked about the Israeli military’s claim that its soldiers “quickly dispersed” the Israeli civilians and reopened the blocked road. “The IDF is lying,” Khanna said, referring to the Israel Defense Forces. “What happened was unprecedented. They had violent settlers detain American citizens, including an American government official. You had these settlers brandishing M4 [rifles], kicking the tires of our van, laughing at us, mocking at us, videotaping us. “We were detained for about 20 minutes, fearful of our lives. Then the IDF comes, four soldiers. They tell our translator that they’re on the side of the settlers. They further detain us and block us in.” Khanna was also asked about comments by Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu , who appeared before him on Meet the Press and called the armed settlers who stopped the congressman’s vehicle as a small band of “juvenile delinquents”. Netanyahu maintained they are not part of what he called the “law-abiding” community of Israeli settlers. That does excuse the IDF from detaining American citizens.” In an interview on Sunday on CBS News’ Face the Nation, Israel’s US-born ambassador to the US, Michael Leiter, accused Khanna of visiting the West Bank as a political stunt – both to distract from his past support of Graham Platner , the former Maine US Senate candidate accused of sexual assault, and to promote his potential run for the White House in 2028.
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Israeli ambassador to US accuses Ro Khanna of political stunt to distract from support for Graham Platner Ro Khanna accused the Israeli government and military of “lying” on Sunday about the US congressman’s detention by armed settlers and Israeli soldiers during a recent visit to the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Khanna – a California Democrat – had posted video evidence on social media of Israeli settlers and soldiers blocking the path of his convoy on Wednesday in the South Hebron hills, near the village of Zanuta, where Israelis have driven Palestinians from their homes in what Amnesty International calls a government-backed “ethnic cleansing campaign”. Continue reading...
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Published by The Guardian – US News on theguardian.com
