'Hold settlers accountable for West Bank violence', Kamala Harris tells Israeli president

US Vice President Kamala Harris has called for the need to hold extremist Jewish settlers accountable for acts of violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.

In a phone call with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, Harris reiterated her support for Israel's "right to self-defence" and to "combat to terrorism" but stressed the need to protect civilians in the West Bank.

"Hold extremist settlers accountable for violent acts", she told Herzog, according to a White House readout of their phone conversation.

She stressed the need to establish peace in the Middle East and expressed US commitment to working with regional partners to achieve this.

In the past month alone, at least 163 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank, and more than 2,200 others have been detained, including children and journalists.

As well as the raids, Israel’s far-right government led by Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue expanding settlements in the occupied territory, illegal under international law.

Israel has stepped up its attacks in the West Bank since the start of the Gaza war on 7 October, the day Hamas carried out a surprise incursion into southern Israel, reportedly killing around 1,400 people and taking more than 200 others hostage.

With Israel's war on Gaza, the administration's regional security strategy has crumbled. Will Biden continue down a path that risks the US' reputation and his own re-election? @GiorgioCafiero reports ⬇ https://t.co/TLRj6NDpjw

— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) November 1, 2023

In the Gaza Strip, unprecedented Israeli bombardment has killed over 10,000 people, most of them civilians and children.

The US has expressed unwavering support for Israel, reiterating that it had a right to self-defence against Hamas. It has deployed troops and warships to the eastern Mediterranean in what analysts believe is to deter Iran and its regional proxies from intervening.

On Tuesday, the US House of Representatives voted to censure Rashida Tlaib, the only Palestinian-American in Congress, over her comments on the Israel’s war on Gaza, US media reported.

The Democrat was censured by Republicans and some members of her own party in a resolution that passed by 234 votes to 188.

The resolution said Tlaib was "promoting false narratives" regarding Hamas' 7 October attack.

The censure identified a series of statements made by Tlaib, including a video posted on social media in which she accuses President Joe Biden of supporting genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, and calling on him to back a ceasefire, according to the text of the motion.

(AFP contributed to this report)