What Ro Khanna Didn’t Mention About His ‘Detention’ In Israel

Congressman Ro Khanna, the California Democrat considering a 2028 presidential bid, has spent the past week accusing Israeli settlers and soldiers of unlawfully detaining him and other Americans on an overseas trip.

On July 8th, Khanna joined a delegation organized by Breaking the Silence, a left-wing activist group known for its criticism of Israeli military operations and policies in Judea and Samaria, also known as the West Bank. The group attempted to visit Khirbet Zanuta, a disputed site in the South Hebron Hills that has become a flashpoint in legal battles over unauthorized Arab construction. Israeli authorities designated the area a closed military zone, requiring advance coordination before entry.

According to Israeli authorities, the delegation had entered a closed military zone without prior authorization and was stopped by civilian security personnel coordinating with military forces. Video released after the incident appears to show Israeli soldiers directing the group to wait for police.

Khanna has described the encounter in far more dramatic terms. During a Fox News interview, he claimed “the only reason we’re safe” was because U.S. Embassy official David Brownstein contacted senior Israeli officials.

“The only reason our lives are saved is because of the excellent work of the American embassy,” Khanna said in a Fox News interview, later adding that “American lives weren’t lost” because of the intervention.

Khanna has not publicly provided evidence that members of the delegation faced an imminent threat to their lives.

Khanna claimed that “Israeli settlers, brandishing American made M4s, detained me & other Americans on my trip to Palestine.”

Available footage from Khanna’s group shows armed local security personnel carrying rifles on slings, but does not appear to show weapons being drawn or pointed at members of the delegation.

Naomi Kahn of Regavim, an Israeli advocacy group that tracks illegal Arab building in Judea and Samaria, said Khanna used the situation as a publicity stunt.

“Ro Khanna’s visit was designed to be an anti-Israel PR stunt,” Kahn told The Daily Wire. “Khirbet Zanuta is an illegal outpost that was voluntarily abandoned after the outbreak of the war and the increased military presence in the area.”

Kahn said the High Court of Justice instructed the Israel Defense Forces to protect residents who wished to return to the site and that the military subsequently maintained the area as a closed zone. 

She noted that Khirbet Zanuta sits atop an archaeological site dating back thousands of years that was designated for preservation when Great Britain controlled the area in the mid-20th century. Regavim has argued that unauthorized construction at the site damaged archaeological remains.

Israeli police likewise disputed Khanna’s account.

“By law, civilian access to these areas is prohibited for safety and security reasons,” police told Jewish News Syndicate, adding that officers “witnessed no violence at the scene.”

Police said body camera footage showed that Breaking the Silence Executive Director Nadav Weiman, who was guiding the delegation, had previously been warned about entering the area and was informed that future violations could result in arrest.

“A review of body-worn camera footage confirms that the group leader was explicitly warned by officers, as this was not his first time violating the closed military zone order,” the statement said. “He was issued a final warning that any future violations would result in immediate arrest.” 

Khanna’s group was briefed on the military order once police arrived and then were allowed to leave the restricted area, according to police.

The presence of armed civilian security personnel at the scene was not unusual. Communities throughout Judea and Samaria maintain civilian security teams that coordinate with the IDF and police because of persistent terrorist threats in the region.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu referenced those security concerns during a recent appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press, where he was asked about settler violence and Khanna’s allegations.

“We’re a country of laws and people who break the law, we take them to court,” Netanyahu said. While acknowledging that a small number of Israelis engage in vigilante violence, he described the overwhelming majority of settlers as law-abiding citizens and argued that such incidents should be viewed in the context of “thousands” of attacks against Israeli civilians.

“There are 150 juvenile delinquents that are not part of that community,” Netanyahu said. “I don’t want vigilantes of any kind, and we are working to put them under the law.”

According to Israeli authorities, the security personnel who encountered Khanna’s delegation were not acting as vigilantes but as members of a civilian security team responding to reports that vehicles had entered a closed military zone.

When The Daily Wire visited the same site last summer, a civilian security team quickly arrived, confirmed that reporters had authorization to be there, and departed the scene.

But according to Israeli authorities, Khanna’s delegation had not coordinated entry into the closed military zone, prompting local security personnel to contact the army and police.

The Har Hevron Regional Council, which oversees Israeli communities in the southern Judean Hills, likewise disputed Khanna’s account of the encounter.

“Despite efforts to portray the incident as a ‘violent assault,’ the facts on the ground tell a very different story,” the council said.

The council cited an eyewitness who said Palestinian activists and anti-Israel groups had repeatedly attempted to enter Khirbet Zanuta in recent weeks and had been turned away because of the area’s status as a closed military zone.

According to the eyewitness, two IDF reservists who also serve as local security volunteers approached the group and informed them they were in a restricted area. The group’s security guard allegedly responded that they would wait for the IDF and police to clarify the situation.

“At no point did the residents block the vehicles or assault anyone,” the eyewitness said. “A few minutes later, an IDF patrol arrived. At that point, the residents left the area and allowed the military to handle the situation.”

The IDF also disagreed with Khanna’s characterization of events. According to the military, troops were dispatched after receiving reports that Israeli civilians were blocking vehicles carrying foreign nationals and journalists. The IDF said soldiers dispersed the civilians and reopened the road, adding that soldiers “did not take part in blocking the road.”

“This should be an outrage to any American citizen,” Khanna said.

Kahn called Khanna an agitator and rejected that his status as an American congressman entitled the group to special treatment after entering a restricted military area.

“In any normal country, people who violate the law and trespass are blocked from entering, and are detained (at the very least). They are then arrested, arraigned, and either held over for trial or released on bail. Foreign agitators are either deported and banned re-entry, or sent to prison if there is no treaty with his or her home country.”

She added that “Khanna should have been treated to far less courtesy and hospitality.”

The confrontation was not the only aspect of Khanna’s trip that generated controversy.

During his visit, the congressman met with Hebron Mayor Tayseer Abu Sneineh, a Palestinian official convicted for his role in a deadly 1980 terrorist attack.

Abu Sneineh was one of the gunmen involved in an attack on Jewish worshippers returning from Sabbath prayers near Hebron’s Cave of the Patriarchs. Six people were murdered and 16 wounded in the shooting. Among those killed were two American citizens and a Canadian national.

An Israeli court sentenced Abu Sneineh to life in prison for his role in the attack. He was released three years later as part of a prisoner exchange between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization and later returned to the West Bank following the signing of the Oslo Accords.

During the Fox News interview, Khanna accused Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Leiter of lying about the trip.

Leiter had previously said Israeli officials encouraged Khanna to meet with survivors of the October 7 Hamas massacre, visit Israeli border communities, and hear from families affected by the war. According to Leiter, Khanna declined those opportunities and instead chose to coordinate his itinerary with Palestinian activists.

“We suggested he visit with survivors of the October 7 massacre,” Leiter said. “He ignored that and he decided to coordinate his trip not with Israel, but with Palestinian activists.”

Khanna rejected the characterization, insisting Israeli officials had been informed of his travel plans and saying he specifically wanted to participate in a Palestinian-led tour because he had already visited Israel multiple times and heard the Israeli perspective.