US Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) speaks as House members hold a press conference in Washington, DC, on Sept. 3, 2025. Photo: Josh Morgan-USA Today Network via Reuters Connect

On Saturday, July 11, US Congressman Ro Khanna (D-CA) posted on his X account that he was “detained” by “Israeli settlers.” It was the public’s first hint that anything had happened — three days after the fact. Since then, it has made headlines worldwide, with the largest news outlets repeating his version of the story, while statements from the IDF or Israeli police were reduced to a brief afterthought.

When looking more closely at the series of events, gaps start to emerge. More than that, there appears to be a deep absence of critical questioning by journalists, who simply reported on his story without investigating the events that led up to the incident.

Timeline of Events

When the Israeli Embassy in Washington heard of Congressman Khanna’s upcoming trip to Israel, they reached out to him to coordinate with the Israeli government – but Congressman Khanna ignored the request and coordinated his trip with Palestinian activists and the radical politicized NGO Breaking the Silence, which is known for notoriously spreading unverified allegations against the IDF.

On the afternoon of Wednesday, July 8, Congressman Khanna was visiting a Palestinian village in the West Bank. However, his tour group – unknowingly or not – had entered a designated Closed Military Zone (CMZ), meaning that civilian access was prohibited by law. Israeli officials and the Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. were reportedly unaware of the tour.

Shortly after Congressman Khanna and his tour group arrived, a group of Jewish men reportedly arrived, blocking the road. Congressman Khanna claimed that he was met with “Israeli settlers” who he referred to as “hoodlums” with machine guns who “detained” Khanna and his crew, blocked the road, and then called the IDF.

At this time, the IDF reported answering a call concerning Israeli civilians “unlawfully blocking the vehicles of foreign nationals.” Separately, the Israel Police answered a report concerning “individuals blocking a route in the Judea and Samaria area.”

Congressman Khanna later relayed that settlers detained his crew for 20 minutes before the IDF arrived.

When the IDF arrived on scene, the Executive Director of Breaking the Silence, who was with Congressman Khanna, went to speak to the soldiers. As per protocol with non-active security incidents, the officers told him that they had to wait for the police to arrive. When the Israel Police arrived shortly thereafter, the officers told Congressman Khanna and his crew that entry into such an area was prohibited. Notably, officers on the scene indicated this was not the first time the tour leader had violated a CMZ order and warned that “any future violations would result in immediate arrest.”

Congressman Khanna has said the IDF detained him for an additional 75 minutes. In total, by his own account, the entire episode lasted roughly 95 minutes.

In contradiction to the claims of violence, body-camera footage worn by the officers confirmed that they did not engage in any violence, instead focusing on enforcing the law. Congressman Khanna and the tour group were then briefed on the CMZ, led out of the restricted area, and released.

In reviewing the incident, the IDF said it would also review the identity of the armed individual – contradicting Congressman Khanna’s claim that there were multiple armed individuals. The IDF further stated that soldiers did not take part in blocking the road.

Only on Saturday did Congressman Khanna share that he was “detained.”

Following Congressman Khanna’s post about the incident on X, he sent out a fundraising email, saying, “If this can happen to an American member of Congress, imagine what life is like for Palestinians.” In effect, he turned his own account into a fundraising pitch that should have raised questions as to what the purpose of the visit was.

The International Reporting that Followed

The day following the incident, Congressman Khanna gave an interview to Reuters, which was published on Saturday.

The New York Times first reported the story that same day, following Congressman Khanna’s post on X. He has shared his story of supposed “detention” on NBC’s Meet the Press, and international outlets have made the incident front-page news.

But none of this reporting asks:

• How or why did Khanna end up in a Closed Military Zone?
• Why did he refuse Israeli coordination for a trip through such security-sensitive territory?

More than that, the IDF and police statements that contradict much of Congressman Khanna’s account are added as an afterthought, rather than critically examining the gaping holes in his story.

And if Congressman Khanna wanted to understand the “story of what is happening in the West Bank,” to do so without meeting with any Israeli officials to explain the security situation only points to the desire to tell a specific story. His lack of interest in meeting with any Israelis – including former hostages and survivors of October 7 – only points to this further.

Somewhere between Congressman Khanna’s encounter with Israeli forces on Wednesday and his interviews since, the story became about “settler violence” and the supposed mistreatment of an American congressman – something all evidence contradicts. It was a cheap political point that traded the Congressman’s short visit for a few days of headlines.

The author is a contributor to HonestReporting, a Jerusalem-based media watchdog with a focus on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias — where a version of this article first appeared.