1,000 olive trees of Palestinians burned

burqa (west bank) — For many West Bank Palestinians, the olive tree is both a revered cultural emblem and an economic necessity — but it has also become a focal point of a struggle between them and Israeli settlers for a land they both claim.

More than 1,000 trees owned by Palestinian farmers have been burned or damaged in the Israeli-occupied territory since the harvest began three weeks ago, according to a United Nations report.

The October 23 report by humanitarian affairs office UNOCHA has also logged 19 disruptions “by people believed or known to be Israeli settlers,” with 23 Palestinian farmers injured.

While the settlers dispute those figures, in normal years peace monitors accompany the farmers to protect the harvest. But the coronavirus pandemic has made this harder.

Some Israeli activists are still deploying. “With Covid-19 it is impossible for foreigners to come, harder for Israelis,” said one activist, Guy Butavia.

Olive farmers in areas near some Israeli settlements say they face problems each year. “When we try to reach our fields, the army protects the settlers and prevents us from accessing our olives,” said Adnan Barakat, council head of Burqa village, near Ramallah.

In Burqa, Israeli settlers “stoned and physically assaulted Palestinian olive pickers on three occasions, triggering clashes”, UNOCHA said.

Calling on Israel to ensure the farmers’ safety, UN Middle East envoy Nickolay Mladenov told the Security

Council on Monday: “Each year, the ability of Palestinians to harvest is compromised due to access restrictions, attacks and intimidation.”

Yigal Dilmoni, head of Yesha, the main settler council in the West Bank, said most of the accusations came from “dubious” sources.

“For many years now, extremist organisations... have been carrying out provocative actions and exploiting the harvest season to incite against Israeli civilians,” he said.

“I live on the ground and see thousands of Palestinians harvesting their olives daily without any problem.”

Around 430,000 Israeli settlers live among three million Palestinians in the West Bank, territory that Israel occupied in 1967. —