By Sen. Chris Van Hollen
I have long believed that the United States should pursue a values-based foreign policy that is grounded in clear standards that we apply uniformly across the globe. In order for America to have any credibility, these principles must be applied to friend and foe alike.
I have also long upheld that ensuring the safety and security of Americans abroad must be a top priority. That is why I have consistently stood up for Americans who have been wrongfully imprisoned, endangered, or killed by foreign governments, whether by allies or adversaries. And I have challenged our own government when it has failed to respect the rights of those living in the United States, like in the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
My record on these issues is clear — from pressing the Bush administration to secure the release of Haleh Esfandiari from Iran in 2007, to working with the Obama administration to bring Alan Gross home from Cuba in 2014 (having visited him twice in prison before flying home with him), to pressuring Turkey to release Pastor Andrew Brunson in 2018, to my more recent efforts alongside the families of Evan Gershkovich, Alsu Kurmasheva, Mustafa Kassem, Otto Warmbier, Austin Tice and Shireen Abu Akleh — to name a few. These efforts have not always been successful — in the cases of Mustafa Kassem and Otto Warmbier, I have worked to bring accountability for their deaths through sanctions. For Shireen Abu Akleh, I have sought an independent investigation. In Austin Tice’s case, we continue to seek answers. But I was also proud to push for Evan and Alsu’s release — and to meet with Evan upon his return, after having met with his family while he was in captivity.
I have traveled to Israel to meet with and demand justice for the families who lost loved ones, including American citizens, in the heinous Hamas terror attack on Oct. 7. I have also met on numerous occasions in Israel and in the U.S. with the families of American citizens and many others whose loved ones were taken hostage, to demand the return of all the hostages.
I assure you — my concern for the treatment of all these Americans over the years is neither selective nor minimal. For each one of these individuals — and many more — I have worked to shine a light on their cases, to bring about change, to demand accountability, and more. Whenever American citizens abroad are unjustly treated, I believe we must press, without exception and regardless of political convenience, for accountability.
The government of Israel should not be exempted from such accountability. To say that its actions do not warrant the letter sent by myself and 28 other senators is to ignore the glaring facts.
There have been eight American citizens killed in the West Bank since 2022. They include a journalist, a peaceful activist shot by a soldier from a distance of about 200 yards, a 78-year-old man killed by the Israel Defense Forces, two teenage boys shot through the back of the head while driving in separate incidents, a 14-year-old shot 11 times, a 20-year-old brutally beaten to death by settlers, and just a few weeks ago, another who died as he tried to extinguish a fire set to his house by settlers.
To date, not one of these cases has resulted in criminal charges against the perpetrators. Time and again, we are told the Israeli government is investigating these deaths, but these families get no answers, no justice and no accountability. If your suggestion is to let these investigations continue to play out, I ask, how long should we wait?
Over the last decade, more American civilians have been killed in the West Bank as a result of IDF fire or unchecked settler attacks than those killed by government-sanctioned actions — or willful neglect of political violence — in any other country in the world. Israeli human rights organizations and international monitors have repeatedly documented the impunity with which settler violence has been carried out against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank. The death of American citizens there has been met with a similar lack of accountability. In response to the growing violence on the West Bank, the Biden administration applied sanctions against the most violent settlers. Those sanctions were rescinded by President Trump, sending a terrible message of impunity.
The people of our nation and the people of Israel have an unbreakable bond and a shared commitment to the security of Israel. But the conduct of the Netanyahu government has severely strained our government-to-government relationship. These concerns are often shared by the families of Oct. 7 hostages, who have repeatedly told me that Netanyahu has prioritized his political survival over the return of their loved ones from Gaza.
The Netanyahu government is also testing our bilateral relationship by its current actions, fueled by extremists like ministers Ben-Gvir and Smotrich, to incite extremist settlers and then shield them from accountability for their well-documented attacks against Palestinian villages and civilians in the West Bank. It’s these attacks and the lack of accountability that, in part, have led to Americans’ deaths — and continue to endanger more.
Given these facts — and that U.S. taxpayers provide Israel with more ongoing security assistance than any other country — it’s time that we insist on the same accountability from the Netanyahu government that we would demand from any other government with respect to the killings of American citizens.
I would suggest that it is the Philadelphia Jewish Exponent editorial board, not I, who has applied a double standard. ■
Chris Van Hollen is the senior senator from Maryland. He was elected to serve by Marylanders in 2016 and reelected in 2022.
