Democrat lawmaker claims he was DETAINED by gun-wielding Israelis during trip to Middle East… but right-wingers slam him for ‘staging publicity stunt’

A Democratic politician from California said he was detained by armed, masked settlers and the Israeli army during a tour of the West Bank; Republican lawmakers viewed this claim as a ploy to attract attention.

Rep. Ro Khanna, a Silicon Valley congressman, said the scene unfolded Wednesday during a three-day tour of the ruins of the small Palestinian village of Khirbet Zanuta in the occupied West Bank.

He said he and other Americans in his group were released only after searches with the US Embassy in Jerusalem.

Meanwhile, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) denied that any visitors were detained.

Khanna said that while traveling through the area, which had been abandoned after settler attacks, his group was stopped by masked men armed with weapons he described as “American-made M4s” and refused to let them go.

The conflict was also witnessed by one of the photographers accompanying the group. New York Times.

Khanna said he was disappointed to see Israeli soldiers interacting amicably with the settlers after arriving on the scene, while also hindering his group’s advance.

“If this can happen to an American member of Congress, imagine what life is like for Palestinians who have no smartphones, no security and no national platform,” Khanna said in a fundraising email shortly after the incident.

Rep. Ro Khanna, a Silicon Valley congressman, said the scene unfolded Wednesday during a three-day tour of the ruins of the small Palestinian village of Khirbet Zanuta.

Khanna said he and other Americans in his group were released only after the US Embassy in Jerusalem was searched.

The IDF issued its own statement saying it had received a report that Israeli citizens were blocking foreign nationals and members of the media in the deserted town.

“After receiving the report, Israeli Armed Forces units were dispatched to the scene, quickly dispersed Israeli civilians and reopened the blocked road,” the military said. ‘IDF soldiers serving in the area played no role in closing the road.’

Khanna’s claims came under heavy criticism from Republican lawmakers, who accused him of a ‘publicity stunt’.

North Carolina Rep. Greg Murphy lashed out at Khanna Publish on Xwrites: ‘Sounds like another publicity request. Anything to get in front of the camera. Why else would you be there? ‘This is not your country.’

Middle East Forum Chief Strategist Jim Hanson also described the Democrat’s claims as a “performative display of anger.”

‘You knowingly tried to take your tour bus into an area where civilians are not allowed. Local security stopped you and the IDF confirmed that you were not authorized to enter,’ Hanson said he wrote in his own reply.

‘You were not detained, your entry was properly denied and your agitation support failed,’ he added. ‘Now you and the NYT are trying to make a scene out of this empty falafel.’

Hanson also said Israel had stopped ‘coddling the terrorists it has had to live alongside’ for more than 70 years and accused Khanna of ‘selling lies’.

According to The New York Times, the confrontation was witnessed by one of the photographers accompanying the group

Khanna’s claims came under heavy criticism from Republican lawmakers who accused him of a “publicity stunt”

“The lies you peddle about the fabricated “Gaza Genocide” and the IDF’s legitimate military actions against terrorists do not change the facts on the ground,” he wrote.

‘Israel has offered peace dozens of times, and the Palestinians have offered death and destruction in return. Now they are reaping what they sowed.’

Settlement construction and settler violence against Palestinians have increased in the West Bank in recent years.

Although Israeli officials condemn some of the most serious incidents, they mostly characterize them as isolated incidents and perpetrators are rarely held accountable.

The international community overwhelmingly considers the settlements illegal.

Democratic politicians in the US have intensified their criticism of Israel as voters have increasingly turned against it since the start of the war in Gaza.

A recent poll by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that nearly 58 percent of Democrats believe the nation is ‘too supportive’ of Israel.

The latest clash, which highlights rising political tensions between Israel and members of the Democratic Party, came to light when Khanna made his allegations public just before 9.30am on Saturday. Publish on X.

‘During my trip to Palestine, Israeli settlers brandishing American-made M4s detained me and other Americans,’ the congressman wrote.

‘When the IDF arrived, they sided with the settlers and continued our detention,’ he added. ‘They made a huge mistake.’

The next day, The New York Times published an article detailing Khanna’s account of what a staff member described as the most frightening part of the three-day trip.