The US State Department stressed, on Wednesday, the need for visiting diplomats to be able to enter occupied Palestinian villages and towns to investigate what is happening in these sites due to settlers’ attacks on these towns and villages.
In response to a reporter's question regarding the Israeli occupation forces, British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, and others visiting the Palestinian village of Ain Samiya, Vedant Patel, the official alternate spokesman at the Foreign Ministry, said in response to a reporter's question: "Let me say that in general, we acknowledge that Israel is making decisions regarding... “With its security, and we understand that this was a security decision, so the Government of Israel and of course our partners in the United Kingdom can speak more specifically about the Secretary of State’s tours and anything related to that.”
Patel added, explaining: “But what I will also say is that the United States remains committed to discussing this issue with the Israeli leadership, and on issues of settler violence, and we continue to be strongly engaged, including on the ground to visit and deal with these affected communities.”
The Israeli authorities prevented British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly from visiting the Palestinian village of Ain Samia, which was recently emptied of its residents after years of violence by Israeli settlers, according to what press reports revealed.
Cleverly had planned to visit the village of Ein Samia in the occupied West Bank during his three-day tour to Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories last September.
The occupation authorities had also prevented Irish Foreign Minister Michael Martin from visiting the village earlier.
