US Congressman Ro Khanna says armed Israeli settlers detained his group during West Bank visit

US Congressman Ro Khanna on Saturday said he and his delegation were detained for more than an hour by armed Israeli settlers during a visit to the occupied West Bank, describing the incident as a stark example of the conditions faced by Palestinians under Israeli occupation.

According to a Reuters report, the Democratic lawmaker from California said the group's van was surrounded by settlers carrying US-made M4 rifles while they were touring a village in the southern West Bank that had been damaged in settler attacks.

The incident comes as Khanna considers a possible run for the US presidency in 2028 and at a time when Israel's actions in the occupied Palestinian territories have become an increasingly divisive issue within the Democratic Party.

Khanna alleges settlers blocked group's vehicle

Khanna told Reuters that his delegation had visited a Palestinian village where homes and a school had been destroyed when they were confronted by armed settlers.

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"We were at a village that Israeli settlers had destroyed. They had destroyed the school, they had destroyed that village, and we were just looking at it," he told the news agency.

According to Khanna, the settlers blocked the road, detained the group and later called the Israeli military.

An aide travelling with Khanna, Cameron Kasky, said the group was held for more than an hour before officers who appeared to be Israeli police arrived and allowed them to leave.

He added that the delegation had contacted the US Embassy in Jerusalem seeking assistance during the incident.

The Israeli military said troops and police responded after receiving reports of Israeli civilians blocking vehicles near Khirbet Zanuta, a Palestinian hamlet in the southern West Bank. It said security forces dispersed the settlers and allowed the vehicles to continue. Israeli police and the US Embassy did not immediately comment.

Visit comes amid possible White House bid

Khanna, a prominent progressive Democrat, said the visit had strengthened his resolve to consider running for President in 2028.

"I'm strongly considering it and I'm more resolved to consider it after this trip," he said.

He said he deliberately chose to visit only the West Bank with a programme organised by Palestinians in order to gain what he described as an unfiltered understanding of the situation on the ground.

Khanna argued that the conflict had become a defining moral issue for many Democrats and criticised members of his party who, in his view, have failed to speak out on Palestinian rights.

Israel debate deepens within Democratic Party

Khanna's visit came days after former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel also travelled to Israel, where he warned that Israeli policies towards Palestinians were weakening support for the US-Israel relationship among Democrats.

According to a Reuters poll, Israel's favourability rating among Democratic voters has fallen sharply in recent years. At the same time, a growing number of Democratic lawmakers have called for restrictions on the approximately $3.8 billion in annual US military aid provided to Israel.

Khanna described the issue as a major political and moral challenge facing his party. Israel, however, rejects accusations that it has committed genocide in Gaza or operates an apartheid system in the West Bank.