Israeli settlers steal Palestinians' olives as attacks on harvest grow more violent
Rights groups say 125 attacks and 168 thefts have hit Palestinian harvesters this season, with settlers using outposts to funnel stolen olives into oil presses.
- On Wednesday, Yesh Din reported 125 physical attacks on Palestinian olive harvesters and 168 incidents of crop theft over 24 days, with Israeli military forces present in at least a quarter of cases.
- Under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government since 2022, hundreds of small settler outposts have been established, increasingly restricting Palestinian access to olive groves across the West Bank.
- Settlers at Avichai Farm seized hundreds of acres around Lubban al-Gharbi, including olive groves, between 2023 and 2026. The farm advertises 'premium products' online at about $20 a bottle, according to Reuters.
- An Israeli government spokesperson claimed olives "picked by a Jew in the ancestral homeland of the Jewish people" do not constitute theft. Palestinian farmer Samer Ben Shamsi said, "This year, they steal without fear because they have a state and a powerful force backing them."
- Harvest violence has accelerated ahead of an Israeli election next week, with opinion polls suggesting Netanyahu's pro-settler coalition could lose to opponents who have taken a more critical stance against settler violence.
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41 Articles
Emboldened Israeli settlers lead a surge of attacks on Palestinians’ olive harvest – WTOP News
BURQA, West Bank (AP) — Attacks by Jewish settlers have surged this year during the Palestinians’ annual olive harvest in the occupied West Bank. Scenes of Palestinians, journalists and diplomats beaten by masked men spotlight how settlers have been establishing themselves deeper in Palestinian communities, emboldened by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ’s government. At least four Palestinians have been killed this season, whether by settlers …
GazetteXtra
Emboldened Israeli settlers lead a surge of attacks on Palestinians' olive harvest
Attacks by Jewish settlers on Palestinians have surged during the olive harvest in the occupied West Bank. The violence has drawn international criticism as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces a tight election race. The attacks point to how settlers have…
Zeit Online
Israel arrested 36 Palestinians in the West Bank, while 17 attacks on farmers and olive groves occurred during the harvest season.
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