Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna said Saturday that he was briefly “detained” by Israeli settlers and the military during a visit to a West Bank village earlier in the week.
The California congressman said in a social media post that while he was on the trip on Wednesday near the West Bank hamlet of Khirbet Zanuta “settlers, brandishing American made M4s” detained him and other Americans who were with him in a bus.
In this photo provided by Cameron Kasky, armed men block the road, stopping vehicles containing Rep. Ro Khanna and his delegation near the West Bank village of Khirbet Zanuta, on July 8, 2026.
Cameron Kasky via AP
In an interview with Reuters on Thursday, Khanna said the settlers blocked the road and then called the military.
Khanna claimed in his X post that when the Israel Defense Forces arrived, they “sided with the settlers & continued our detention.”
The IDF moved the vehicles blocking the roadway after speaking with the Israeli civilians, the congressman told Reuters.
In this photo provided by Cameron Kasky, armed men block the road, stopping vehicles containing Rep. Ro Khanna and his delegation near the West Bank village of Khirbet Zanuta, on July 8, 2026.
Cameron Kasky via AP
The IDF said in a statement that it received calls on Wednesday of Israeli civilians who “were unlawfully blocking the vehicles of foreign nationals and members of the media.”
“Upon receiving the report, IDF troops were dispatched to the scene, quickly dispersed the Israeli civilians, and reopened the blocked road. The IDF soldiers operating in the area did not take part in blocking the road,” the IDF said in a statement.
Rep. Ro Khanna speaks with a Palestinian resident of Turmus Ayya, near Ramallah, during a visit in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, July 9, 2026.
Ammar Awad/Reuters
The IDF added the identity of the armed individual connected with the incident is under review.
Khanna said in the social media post that the IDF “made a big mistake,” and ended his statement with “you will be hearing more soon.”