KEY POINTS:
• US Ambassador Mike Huckabee called an attack on a Palestinian church in Taybeh an “act of terror” on July 19, according to Reuters • Clerics said Israeli settlers started a fire near a cemetery and 5th-century church on July 8, Reuters reported • Israel’s government has not commented on the incident, Reuters stated
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Saturday called for the perpetrators of an attack on a Palestinian church in the occupied West Bank to be prosecuted, labeling it an “act of terror,” according to multiple news outlets.
Huckabee visited the Christian town of Taybeh, where clerics said Israeli settlers had started a fire near a cemetery and a 5th-century church on July 8, Reuters reported on July 19.
“It is an act of terror, and it is a crime,” Huckabee said in a statement published by the US Embassy, adding that “Those who carry out acts of terror and violence in Taybeh – or anywhere – (should) be found and be prosecuted. Not just reprimanded, that’s not enough.”
The US Embassy statement, posted on July 19, quoted Huckabee as saying: “To commit an act of sacrilege by desecrating a place that is supposed to be a place of worship, it is an act of terror, and it is a crime. There should be consequences, and it should be harsh consequences because it is one of the last bastions of our civilization, the places where we worship.”
Israel’s government has not commented on the incident, but has previously denounced such acts, Reuters reported on July 19.
Church Leaders Detail Attack
Vatican News reported on July 9 that “a group of Jewish settlers set fires near the Byzantine Christian cemetery and at the Church of Al-Khader (St. George), dating back to the 5th century and one of the oldest and most venerated places of worship for Christians in Palestine.”
America Magazine reported on July 9 that “On July 7, settlers carried out a daytime arson attack on the Church of St. George and a Byzantine Christian cemetery.”
According to the Times of Israel on July 9, local church leaders called the police emergency line twice during the arson attack and were told that a police force was being dispatched, but said that no police officers arrived at the scene.
Senior Church Officials Allege Israeli Complicity
The Times of Israel reported on July 14 that Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III and Latin Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa alleged that Israeli authorities have facilitated the ongoing harassment.
“The Council of Patriarchs and Heads of Churches calls for these radicals to be held accountable by the Israeli authorities, who facilitate and enable their presence around Taybeh,” The Times of Israel quoted the patriarchs as saying in their joint statement.
Al Jazeera reported on July 14 that representatives from more than 20 countries including the United Kingdom, Russia, China, Japan, Jordan, and the European Union visited Taybeh following the attacks.
Wider Pattern of Violence
Catholic News Agency reported on June 28 that Father Bashar Fawadleh, parish priest of the Church of Christ the Redeemer in Taybeh, told ACI MENA: “The town, which the Gospel of John (11:54) refers to as ‘Ephraim’ — the place Jesus withdrew to before his passion — is no longer safe for its people today… We do not live in peace but in daily fear and siege.”
Father Fawadleh added that “Since last October, more than 10 families have left Taybeh due to fear from ongoing violence and harassment,” according to Catholic News Agency.
Vatican News reported on July 9 that the three parish priests of Taybeh stated the eastern part of the town “has become an open target for illegal Jewish settlement outposts that are quietly expanding under the protection of the Israeli army.”
US Administration Response
On Tuesday, Huckabee said he had asked Israel to “aggressively investigate” the killing of a Palestinian American beaten by settlers in the West Bank, similarly describing it as a “criminal and terrorist act,” Reuters reported on July 19.
The Times of Israel reported on July 19 that Huckabee’s visit to Taybeh “comes amid growing concern from the US over Israeli actions toward Christians.”
Middle East Eye quoted Huckabee on July 19 as saying: “We will certainly insist that those who carry out acts of terror and violence in Taybeh or anywhere be found, be prosecuted, not just reprimanded. That’s not enough.”
Rising Settler Violence Statistics
Al Jazeera reported on July 15 that the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights stated there have been 757 settler attacks on Palestinians or their properties since January, which is a 13 percent increase over the same period last year.
The Norwegian Refugee Council reported on July 10 that at least 2,894 Palestinians have been displaced by settler violence since January 2023, including 1,638 in 2023, 621 in 2024, and 635 so far in 2025.
Al Jazeera reported on January 22 that from October 7, 2023 to December 31, 2024, at least 1,860 incidents of settler violence in the occupied West Bank were recorded – an average of four a day according to data from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
