US Citizen Beaten to Death by Israeli Settlers in West Bank, Family Says
July, 12, 2025 - 10:55
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Israeli settlers have beaten a young American citizen to death in the occupied West Bank, according to his family and human rights groups, prompting calls for US accountability amid a surge in settler violence.
Seif al-Din Muslat, a US citizen in his early 20s from Tampa, Florida, was killed on Friday in the Palestinian town of Sinjil, north of Ramallah, the Palestinian Health Ministry reported.
Family members told The Washington Post that Muslat was beaten to death by Israeli settlers while visiting relatives in the West Bank.
His cousin, Fatmah Muhammad, said on social media that Muslat had travelled from Florida to Palestine to see family.
The US State Department confirmed it was aware of the reports.
“We are aware of reports of the death of a US citizen in the West Bank,” a State Department spokesperson told Reuters, declining to provide further details out of respect for the victim’s family.
A second Palestinian, identified by the Health Ministry as Mohammed Shalabi, was shot dead during the same incident.
Rights groups say Israeli settlers have increasingly targeted Palestinian communities with violence, often under military protection.
Such attacks—frequently involving arson, beatings, and destruction of property—have been described by human rights advocates as pogroms.
The United Nations and multiple rights organizations consider Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law and part of a broader campaign to forcibly displace Palestinians.
Violent settler activity has surged since the start of Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza in October 2023.
While some countries sanctioned violent settlers, attacks continue.
Under the administration of US President Donald Trump, sanctions on settlers imposed by the previous administration were lifted.
Since 2022, Israeli forces have killed at least nine American citizens, including veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh.
None of these cases have led to criminal prosecutions.
The US provides Israel with billions of dollars annually in military aid.
Advocacy groups have accused successive US administrations of failing to safeguard American citizens from Israeli violence.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) demanded action from the US government following Muslat’s death.
“Every other murder of an American citizen has gone unpunished by the American government,” CAIR deputy director Edward Ahmed Mitchell said in a statement.
Mitchell added, “If President Trump will not even put America first when Israel murders American citizens, then this is truly an Israel First administration.”
The Institute for Middle East Understanding (IMEU) also called for a US response, saying settlers are “lynching Palestinians more frequently – with full support from Israel’s army and government.”
“The US government has a legal and moral obligation to stop Israel’s racist violence against Palestinians,” IMEU said.
The US State Department did not respond to Al Jazeera's request for comment on Muslat’s killing.
Hamas condemned the killing, calling it a “barbaric crime,” and urged Palestinians to confront settlers across the West Bank.
The Israeli military said it was investigating the incident.
It claimed violence broke out after Palestinians threw stones at an Israeli vehicle.
“Shortly thereafter, violent clashes developed in the area between Palestinians and Israeli civilians, which included the destruction of Palestinian property, arson, physical confrontations, and stone-throwing,” the regime's military said in a statement.
Israeli investigations into settler and military violence rarely result in charges.
The killing comes amid ongoing Israeli war crime in Gaza, where at least 57,762 Palestinians have been killed, according to health officials, in a campaign that rights groups have described as a genocide.
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2025/07/12/3352623/us-citizen-beaten-to-death-by-israeli-settlers-in-west-bank-family-says
