Olives are a symbol of Palestinian nationality and cultural importance, and are primary or secondary source of income for between 80,000-100,000 Palestinians. About 75% of Palestinian olive oil is consumed domestically providing high production value to Palestinians– but olive groves have become a target for Israeli attacks, especially at the height of olive season in October. According to the Palestinian Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, there have been a reported total of 158 attacks against Palestinian olive pickers by Israeli military and settlers along the West Bank. 

For the past two weeks, the Israeli settlers and military occupying the West Bank have been preventing farmers from accessing their farm land, cutting off access to their livelihoods in the height of their olive groves’ productions. Israeli forces have even peppered and tear gassed farmers attempting to reach their olive groves. In the village of Nahalin, Ahmad Shakarna, a 65-year-old farmer, was beat by three Israeli soldiers and an Israeli settler whilst harvesting olives with his family. In the villages of Aqraba and Qabalan, armed settlers have brought dogs to attack farmers and take tools from them.

The occupation and display of violence by Israeli settlers and military in Palestine’s West Bank is just one instance within the ongoing war between Israel and Palestine, which was re-ignited in Oct. 2023 with Israel hoping to reclaim Jerusalem due to its historical and significance to Judaism, the officially recognized state religion of Israel. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, since Oct. 2023, Israeli settler and military attacks have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians and wounded over 10,000 others. Furthermore, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees claims that over 2,400 individual instances of targeting Palestinian property have occurred, and over 3,055 people have been displaced.

Israeli settlers have now brought a wave of violence targeting olive harvesting residents. Local resident Mujahid Tamimi alleged that settlers assaulted the farmers near the village’s western entrance, beating residents with rifle butts and forcing them to leave their land. These settlers are typically armed, many having experience serving in the army. Following the settler occupation and increase of violence, Israeli military forces entered the village to provide protection for the Israeli settlers occupying the area.

It is assumed that the goal of the attacks against these Palestinian residents and farmers is to create an unsafe environment within their homes and villages, driving them away. In this particular case, this would result in the dismantling of a major product of Palestine, harming the economy and further exacerbating food insecurity within Palestine. According to Rescue.org, the “more than two years of conflict have left over two million Palestinians, half of whom are children, without access to sufficient water, food, or medical care. Famine has become a deadly reality, with catastrophic hunger tightening its grip across the population”. This direct attack of farmers and their produce will severely harm the financial stability and health of those who had been waiting for the olive harvest to support their families and selves.

The attack of farmers and residents in the West Bank by Israeli settlers and military has not only brought about horrible acts of violence against innocent Palestinians, but it will also worsen food insecurity, displace families, and remove people from their culture and source of income. The Israel-Palestinian conflict has already claimed thousands of lives, and these civilian attacks fueled by hate and decades old turmoil will only claim more lives and bring about more hardships for the people of Palestine.