Rep. Ro Khanna said he was briefly detained by Israeli settlers brandishing assault rifles during a visit this week to a southern part of the West Bank.
The California Democrat recounted the experience in interviews with The New York Times and Reuters. He told the Times he was touring Khirbet Zanuta, a destroyed Palestinian village that was abandoned by residents following attacks by Israeli settlers, on Wednesday afternoon when a car appeared with armed men.
The men swore in Hebrew and Arabic at Khanna and his group, he said. Khanna said the men carried M4s, a type of assault rifle manufactured in the United States, and blocked the road for over an hour. The settlers then called the Israel Defense Forces, who Khanna said sided with the settlers. In videos posted by Khanna to social media, a man in military uniform and another in civilian clothing with a firearm can be seen talking with one another.