Outrage as Trump ambassador ignores brutal attack on American news crew
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee was condemned Saturday for ignoring a brutal attack on an American news crew that occurred earlier that same day.
A crew of three NBC News correspondents was reporting from the occupied West Bank on Saturday near the Palestinian village of Jalud when a vehicle accelerated toward them with Israeli license plates, the outlet reported.
“They jumped out, beat us, then jumped back in the car,” said NBC News correspondent Matt Bradley, who the outlet notes was “hit twice in the arm and later treated at a nearby clinic.”
Aida Ahmed Abdullah, a Palestinian woman being interviewed by the NBC News crew, was also injured in the attack.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a vague statement Saturday condemning the attacks, calling them “acts of violence” that harm “Israel’s standing in the world,” though did not mention that Americans were attacked in the incident.
Responding to Netanyahu and other Israeli officials’ remarks, Huckabee called them “strong statements,” but similarly made no mention of the attack on Americans. He also called on the Palestinian Authority to “join in condemning violence against Israel by Palestinians.”
Huckabee's ignoring of an attack on Americans left several critics outraged.
“There is literally nothing in this statement to indicate that it’s the U.S. ambassador to Israel talking about Israeli violence against Americans,” wrote Jasper Nathaniel, a journalist known for his coverage of the West Bank and Israeli settler violence, in a social media post on X. “Reads entirely like a statement by an Israeli official.”
Journalist and NBC News contributor Hooman Majd further suggested Huckabee’s allegiance was stronger to Israel rather than the United States, and urged the Trump administration official to “protect American citizens.”
“You're the American ambassador, not the spokesman for the Israeli government,” Majd wrote in a social media post on X. “Rather than congratulating the IDF and the Israeli FM, take a moment to protect American citizens trying to do their job.”
Foreign policy analyst Trita Parsi went as far as to suggest that Israeli officials knew in advance that Huckabee “wouldn’t lift a finger” in defense of the victimized Americans.
“When you read about [the] members of an NBC News Team being beaten by Israeli settlers today in the West Bank, it's important to note two things: The [settlers] wouldn't do this to Americans had they not received a green light from the Israeli gov,” Parsi wrote. “[And], Israel's gov would not have given such a green light unless it felt confident that the US gov — and Amb. Huckabee — wouldn't lift a finger to defend the Americans.”
Huckabee has appeared to endorse the idea of “Greater Israel” in the past, with “Greater Israel” referring to the territorial aspirations of some Israelis to significantly expand the nation’s borders. Netanyahu — who was indicted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes — said as recently as last August that he “absolutely” subscribed to a “vision” for “Greater Israel.”
So when you read about eight members of an NBC News Team being beaten by Israeli settlers today in the West Bank, it's important to note two things:
1. The settler wouldn't do this to Americans had they not received a green light from the Israeli gov.
2. Israel's gov would not… pic.twitter.com/UY5jX0CqgV
— Trita Parsi (@tparsi) August 29, 2026