US ambassador calls violent Israeli settlers ‘terrorists’ after weeks of West Bank unrest

JERUSALEM (AP) – The United States ambassador to Israel condemned Israeli settler violence in the occupied West Bank again on Saturday, calling the behavior an "act of terror" as he visited with Palestinian American residents shaken by months of attacks.

What happened

Ambassador Mike Huckabee referred to such settlers as "terrorists, " a word that U.S. Authorities usually reserve for Palestinian militants.

"If there are squatters that come in and put up their own flags and take possession of something that does not belong to them, if they burn a car, if they torch a mosque, if they go into someone's home and vandalize it, paint graffiti on the walls, that's a criminal act. But it extends beyond a criminal act. It's an act of terror, " Huckabee remarked during his visit to the village of Turmus Ayya. It has noted frequent attacks by settlers over the past year.

The bottom line

Taken together, the developments around US ambassador calls violent Israeli settlers 'terrorists' after weeks of West Bank point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.