Anger turns towards Washington in West Bank town mourning two men killed by settlers
AL-MAZRA’A ASH-SHARQIYA, West Bank — Frustration among Palestinians grew towards the United States on Sunday as mourners packed the roads to a cemetery in the Israeli-occupied West Bank town of Al-Mazr’a Ash-Sharqiya for the burial of two men, one of them a Palestinian American, killed by settlers.
Palestinian health authorities and witnesses said Sayfollah Musallet, 21, was beaten to death, and Hussein Al-Shalabi, 23, was shot in the chest by settlers during a confrontation on Friday night.
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Most of the small town’s roughly 3,000 residents share family ties to the United States and many hold citizenship, including Musallet, who was killed weeks after flying to visit his mother in Al-Mazr’a Ash-Sharqiya, where he travelled most summers from Tampa, Florida.
“There’s no accountability,” said his father Kamel Musallet, who flew from the United States to bury his son.
“We demand the United States government do something about it … I don’t want his death to go in vain.”
Israeli killings of U.S. citizens in the West Bank in recent years include those of Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, Palestinian American teenager Omar Mohammad Rabea and Turkish American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi.
A U.S. State Department spokesperson said on Friday it was aware of the latest death, but that the department had no further comment “out of respect for the privacy of the family and loved ones” of the victim.
Many family and community members said they expected more, including that the United States would spearhead an investigation into who was responsible.
A U.S. State Department spokesperson on Sunday referred questions on an investigation to the Israeli government and said it “has no higher priority than the safety and security of U.S. citizens overseas.”
The Israeli military had earlier said Israel was probing the incident. It said confrontations between Palestinians and settlers broke out after Palestinians threw rocks at Israelis, lightly injuring them.
