From In first, US embassy to provide consular services at pop-ups in West Bank settlements
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleJacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
The US Embassy in Israel announces that it will for the first time operate pop-up locations in a pair of West Bank settlements to provide passport services to American citizens.
The first pop-up will be held on Friday in the Efrat settlement, which is home to a large American expat community.
The ultra-Orthodox settlement of Beitar Illit will also host a consular services event along with the Palestinian city of Ramallah, the US embassy says in an X post, adding that there will also be pop-ups in Haifa, Jerusalem, Netanya and Beit Shemesh.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry welcomes “the historic decision by the US Embassy in Jerusalem to extend consular services to American citizens in Judea and Samaria.”
“Thank you [US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee] for making the relation between Israel and the US closer and stronger than ever,” the Foreign Ministry tweets.
Earlier this month, Efrat’s mayor appeared to try and preview the pop-up, but referred to it as a consular branch, leading the US embassy to issue a denial that it was planning to launch something more permanent.
While US President Donald Trump has said that he would not allow Israel to annex the West Bank, Huckabee has expressed support for the controversial move in the past, and the embassy’s decision to operate out of West Bank settlements would appear to be a nod toward Israeli sovereignty in the territory.
— U.S. Embassy Jerusalem (@usembassyjlm) February 24, 2026
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