Following reports that a 20-year-old Palestinian-American man, Sayfollah ‘Saif’ Musallet, was allegedly beaten to death by a group of violent Israeli settlers, and that another 23-year-old Palestinian man was shot and killed in the same incident, J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami released the following statement:
“We’re devastated by reports that a settler attack has killed two young men in the West Bank, including an American citizen. Reports that settlers prevented ambulances from providing life-saving care are appalling, as are reports that IDF forces were present but failed to intervene.
Our hearts go out to these young men’s families and loved ones, and we join them in calling for an independent, US-led investigation into the incident and its aftermath. The unimaginable nightmare these families are enduring must not be compounded by injustice, inaction and a lack of accountability.
Tragically, such incidents are painfully familiar in the West Bank – a result of a pro-settlement government which shields perpetrators from accountability and security services which appear to do more to protect and enable settler violence than prevent it. Since violence spiked following the horrific October 7 attacks, over 200 Palestinian children and teenagers have been killed by soldiers and extremist settlers in the West Bank, and this marks the fifth time an American citizen has been killed in that period.
As Jewish and pro‑Israel Americans, we have an obligation to demand better. We cannot tolerate a system that allows Palestinians – including Palestinian‑Americans – to be killed without consequence. We recognize also that such violence and injustice fuels a cycle of anger, terror and retaliatory attacks that puts Israeli soldiers and civilians at risk as well.
In this context, we continue to call for the reversal of the Trump Administration’s deeply misguided decision to rescind Biden-era sanctions designed to deter further violence and provide a measure of accountability. While we hold little hope of the White House reversing course, there is space for Congress to act. We call on elected officials to publicly call for an independent investigation, and to support the West Bank Violence Prevention Act (H.R. 3045) currently before the House, which would codify the Biden-era sanctions framework.
It is our deepest hope that the Gaza war is brought to a swift end, hostages can come home, sufficient aid can be brought into Gaza and stability and safety restored urgently for the millions of everyday Israelis and Palestinians whose lives are put at risk by this conflict.”