US senator urges probe after Palestinian-American teen killed in West Bank

US senator Chris van Hollen has called for accountability following the killing of a 19-year-old Palestinian-American in the occupied West Bank. 

Speaking to The New Arab, the Democratic senator urged an urgent "impartial investigation and accountability" after Nasrallah Abu Siyam was shot by an Israeli settler in the village of Mukhmas, near Ramallah, on Wednesday.  

Van Hollen, who has previously criticised the Israeli government’s encouragement of settler violence in the West Bank, called on the US State Department to ensure the safety and protection of American citizens in the occupied territory. 

"State Department leaders often say their first priority is the safety of US citizens abroad, and yet they fail repeatedly to uphold that commitment when it comes to US citizens harmed or killed in the West Bank," Van Hollen told The New Arab. 

He continued: "I have serious concerns about this latest killing of a 19-year-old Palestinian-American. When a US citizen is killed abroad, there must be an impartial investigation and accountability."

The Trump administration has yet to address claims that its policies have failed to curb a surge in settler violence, particularly following the killing of Abu Siyam.

The Palestinian Authority’s Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission said that he was the first Palestinian killed by settlers in 2026. 

The State Department said it was aware of the death of a US citizen and was "carefully monitoring the situation". 

In an updated statement released on Saturday, it said it extends its “deepest condolences” to the victim’s family and expects “a full, thorough, and transparent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death”.  

It added that the US embassy in Jerusalem had been in direct contact with the family to provide assistance. 

Meanwhile, the Israeli embassy in Washington also issued a statement, saying the incident was under review and that an "operational inquiry… must be completed as soon as possible". 

According to multiple reports citing relatives of Abu Siyam, settlers raided the West Bank village to steal sheep.  

When residents, including Abu Siyam, attempted to prevent the theft, the settlers opened fire, wounding the Philadelphia-born teenager and others.  

The Palestinian Ministry of Health confirmed that Abu Siyam died from critical wounds sustained on Wednesday afternoon. 

Violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank has increased sharply since the outbreak of the genocidal war on Gaza in October 2023. According to UN data, nearly 700 people were displaced due to settler attacks in 2026.  

In 2025, Israeli forces and settlers killed 240 Palestinians, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. 

Israeli indictments in cases of settler violence remain rare.

Israeli monitoring group Yesh Din has said that of the hundreds of cases of settler violence it documented since the start of the two-year conflict, only 2 percent had resulted in indictments by the end of 2025. 

The Trump administration has also faced criticism from rights groups for lifting sanctions imposed under the previous administration of Joe Biden on violent settlers. 

Several US citizens, including activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers in the West Bank over the past two years.