In September 2024, UW grad Aysenur Ezgi Eygi was shot to death while she was peacefully protesting in the West Bank
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) joined 44 Senate colleagues in a letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, urging him to put an end to increasing violence by Israeli settlers in the West Bank.
“Incidents of fatal violence by settlers have reportedly already surpassed 2025 levels and continue to increase,” wrote the Senators. “The last few weeks alone saw a significant surge in violence on both sides, resulting in a large-scale response by Israeli security forces, mass arrests of Palestinians, and reported attacks by settlers on mosques. We urge you to take measures to prevent and intercede in this violence, establish a credible mechanism to investigate violations of law, and to make clear that the Government of Israel will not tolerate violence by its people, just as it does not tolerate violence against its people.”
The Senators noted that U.S. citizens and their families have been subject to the increasing violence.
On September 6, 2024, University of Washington graduate Aysenur Ezgi Eygi was shot to death while she was peacefully protesting in the West Bank.
Later that month, Sen. Cantwell sent a letter to President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken calling for the White House and State Department to order an independent investigation into Eygi’s shooting death.
In July 2025, Sen. Cantwell joined Senate Democrats in a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and then-Attorney General Pam Bondi calling for an investigation into the death of Palestinian-American Saifullah Kamel Musallet in the West Bank earlier that month, as well as updates into the investigations of other deaths in Gaza, including Eygi’s.
In September 2025, Sen. Cantwell joined a bicameral letter to Sec. Rubio demanding answers from the U.S. State Department about two violent attacks on American citizens in the West Bank.
In October 2025, Sen. Cantwell joined Senate Democrats in a letter to President Trump supporting his efforts to oppose the annexation of the West Bank by Israel.
The full text of today’s letter is HERE and below.
Dear Mr. Prime Minister,
We write in shared concern and opposition to the growing levels of violence in the West Bank. Many of us have previously expressed to President Trump that continued settlement expansion and fighting in the West Bank will harm Israel’s long-term security and the prospects for lasting peace, prosperity, and freedom for Israelis and Palestinians alike.
Incidents of fatal violence by settlers have reportedly already surpassed 2025 levels and continue to increase. The last few weeks alone saw a significant surge in violence on both sides, resulting in a large-scale response by Israeli security forces, mass arrests of Palestinians, and reported attacks by settlers on mosques. We urge you to take measures to prevent and intercede in this violence, establish a credible mechanism to investigate violations of law, and to make clear that the Government of Israel will not tolerate violence by its people, just as it does not tolerate violence against its people.
We write particularly on behalf of American citizens who have been killed or threatened in such violence. Many of us have heard first-hand from their families and other constituents who have themselves been threatened without cause by settlers. We have engaged the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem and your embassy in Washington to ensure their protection and appreciate measures taken on their behalf, but a more significant response from your government is clearly needed. We ask for your personal and direct engagement and intervention in order to protect our constituents and their families.
President Trump and Secretary of State Rubio have expressed their opposition to all violence in the West Bank and actions aimed at annexation, but those concerns have gone unaddressed. Now, we urge you to take the following actions:
- Issue clear directives to the Israeli Police and Israeli Defense Forces to prevent and intervene in harassment, threats, and actual use of violence, regardless of the perpetrators.
- Ensure that all those responsible for harassment, threats, and violence against Palestinians, including Palestinian-Americans, are held accountable through a transparent and credible process. This includes completing investigations into and ensuring accountability for the deaths of nine American citizens who have been killed by settlers or security forces in the West Bank since 2022.
- Stop approving additional settlements and stop allowing the construction of, and take steps to remove, illegal outposts in the West Bank.
Like you, the safety and security of our constituents is of paramount importance. We urge your government to ensure that Americans in the Israeli-controlled parts of the West Bank are able to enjoy the security and protection of property to which they are entitled. We also hope to see the conditions improved so that Israelis and Palestinians may one day live in peace with each other without the fear of terrorism or lawless violence.
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