Illegal Israeli settlers continue to attack Palestinian olive farmers in occupied West Bank

By Aysar Al-Ayas

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) – Illegal Israeli settlers once again attacked two neighborhoods in the occupied West Bank on Friday, forcing Palestinian olive farmers to flee to their safety and stealing personal belongings, according to witnesses.

Armed settlers attacked Palestinians harvesting olive trees in the village of Yasuf, eastern Salfit city, in the northern West Bank, forcing them to flee their lands.

Wael Abu Madi, the village council's president, said the illegal settlers evicted farmers from their olive farms and prevented others from reaching their lands to pick olives from trees.

In a related development, witnesses in Salem village, near Nablus city, told Anadolu that Israeli forces assaulted farmers picking olives, injuring several of them as they fired tear gas shells.

Witnesses also reported that the Israeli troops assaulted and detained a Palestinian youth during their incursion into the Jalazone refugee camp, located north of Ramallah in the central West Bank.

Meanwhile, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that Israeli forces stormed the Al-Khader town south of Bethlehem and clashed with Palestinians, firing stun grenades and tear gas shells.

In the Masafer Yatta area, the southern West Bank, illegal Israeli settlers stole a tent and furniture belonging to a Palestinian man and raided a school in the area, according to Wafa.

The illegal Israeli settlers' violence continues, despite UN spokesperson Farhan Haq warning on Thursday that their increased attacks during the olive harvest endanger the security and livelihoods of Palestinians in the region.

According to the Palestinian Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission, there have been 2,777 illegal settler attacks in the occupied West Bank since the start of the Gaza onslaught on Oct. 7, 2023. These attacks have resulted in the deaths of 19 Palestinians and displaced 292 families from 28 Bedouin communities.

At least 756 Palestinians have since been killed and over 6,250 others injured by Israeli army fire in the occupied territory, according to the Health Ministry.

In a landmark opinion on July 19, the International Court of Justice declared Israel's decades-long occupation of Palestinian land "illegal" and demanded the evacuation of all existing settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar