From the Liveblog of
Monday, August 4, 2025
US Speaker Johnson makes landmark visit to West Bank settlement
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleUS Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has paid a visit to the large West Bank settlement of Ariel, making him the highest-ranking US official to visit an Israeli settlement.
A picture shared online by the Israel Hayom daily shows Ariel Mayor Yair Chetboun with Johnson and Johnson’s wife Kelly Lary, apparently after having planted a tree.
באישור הבית הלבן: יו"ר בית הנבחרים האמריקני מייק ג'ונסון ערך ביקור היסטורי בלב השומרון@arik3000
צילום: עיריית אריאל pic.twitter.com/jmP8DWPNhb— ישראל היום (@IsraelHayomHeb) August 4, 2025
Axios reports that Johnson and four other Republican lawmakers are in Israel on a previously unannounced trip, organized by Heather Johnston, the founder of a group called the U.S. Israel Education Association. It says the trip is designated as private and not official.
On X, Marc Zell, who heads the GOP’s Israel branch and is himself a West Bank settler, says Johnson said during his visit that “the mountains of Judea and Samaria are the rightful property of the Jewish People.”
Speaker Mike Johnson says that the mountains of Judea and Samaria are the rightful property of the Jewish People. He criticizes those erstwhile allies of Israel who are calling to recognize a palestinian state. He closes with a statement that as the U.S. begins to celebrate its…
— Marc Zell (@GOPIsrael) August 4, 2025
The Times of Israel Community.