VIDEOS: Israeli settlers harass Palestinians in West Bank. US ambassador: Horrific act of terror

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee condemned a siege by Jewish settlers that began Sunday at an American Palestinian family's home in Qusra in the Israeli-occupied West Bank as a "horrific act of terror."

NPR said local officials and family members reported that settlers gathered near the home, harassed those inside and defied Israeli military efforts to calm the situation.

The group, at times numbering up to dozens of men, threw stones, tried to bring down a nearby stone wall and prevented the occupants from leaving as supplies dwindled. Homeowner Lou Ridi, speaking by phone from Ohio, said his 48-year-old brother and nephew had stayed inside to defend the property and lacked access to food or water for several days.

On Thursday morning, Qusai Abu Rida, the owner's brother, said he and his teenage son had been evacuated by Israel's military. The Israeli military said its troops overnight dismantled "two illegal outposts" on the outskirts of Qusra and a nearby village, detained one Israeli and sent additional soldiers to "carry out defensive missions and patrols."

Roads into Qusra, about 16 kilometers (10 miles) from Nablus, were closed, journalists on the village outskirts said. Israeli police did not immediately respond to questions about whether any Israeli civilians had been arrested, and it was unclear what would happen to the targeted property and at least one other property.

Palestinians and the Israeli opposition accuse Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's hardline government of turning a blind eye to settler attacks as clashes have surged in recent years. Huckabee, a longtime ally of Israel's settler movement who has supported Israeli control over the West Bank while condemning settler violence, issued an unusually sharp U.S. rebuke while also defending the Israeli military's response.