The Olive Trees They Refuse to Leave Behind

WEST BANK /PNN /

Israeli settlers escalated attacks on Palestinians and their property across the West Bank on Thursday, coinciding with the sixth day of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. The attacks included preventing farmers from harvesting olives, stealing and damaging crops, bulldozing Palestinian-owned land, raiding towns and archaeological sites, attacking Palestinian vehicles and closing major roads.

In southern Nablus, settlers attacked farmers from the town of Awarta and prevented them from reaching their land and harvesting olives as the season got underway.

Local sources said settlers attacked farmers in the town's plain area and forced them off their land. Awarta was also targeted in an arson attack in June, when firebombs were thrown, sparking fires on land near the town's main water well.

In the village of al-Mughayyir, northeast of Ramallah, settlers entered Palestinian-owned land and stole olives under the protection of Israeli forces, triggering clashes between Palestinian youths and Israeli troops as residents attempted to confront them. Israeli soldiers also took positions on the rooftops of two homes belonging to residents Abdul-Hay Nasan and Raiq Nasan.

In Umm Safa, northwest of Ramallah, settler-owned vehicles and bulldozers levelled privately owned Palestinian land as Israeli forces continued to besiege the home of resident Mohammad al-Obaiyat for a fifth consecutive day and prevented residents from reaching the village cemetery.

Marwan Sabah, head of the Umm Safa village council, said the siege of the house was intended to pressure its owner to leave because the property is adjacent to a settlement outpost. He said settlers had seized hundreds of dunams of land south of the village and established a settlement outpost there about two months ago. He warned of a plan to displace village residents and establish a large settlement there.

Also northwest of Ramallah, dozens of settlers entered the Wadi Riya area between the towns of Deir Nidham and Nabi Saleh under the protection of Israeli forces, which closed several roads and prevented vehicles from passing.

Naji al-Tamimi, head of the Nabi Saleh village council, said the road closures disrupted residents' movement, caused traffic congestion and forced people to use longer alternative routes.

Al-Tamimi said Israeli forces and settlers have stepped up incursions into the area since Oct. 7, 2023, while Palestinians have been prevented from reaching and cultivating their agricultural land.

The attacks come amid an escalation targeting the olive harvest across the West Bank, including preventing farmers from reaching their land, stealing olives, cutting down trees and setting them on fire.

According to the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, Nablus governorate recorded 900 settler attacks during the first half of 2026, including 137 attacks in August alone, out of 628 attacks recorded across the West Bank that month.

The attacks resulted in 6,015 trees being cut down or damaged in Nablus during the first half of the year, including olive trees.

According to figures from the Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture through the end of September 2026, 98,293 olive trees across the West Bank had been damaged. Direct losses to the crop exceeded $66.5 million, while cumulative losses since 2023 reached about $316.9 million.

Tareq Abu Laban, assistant undersecretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, said the area of land near the separation barrier and settlements that farmers are prevented from accessing had increased from 130,000 dunams to between 220,000 and 230,000 dunams.