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- 5 sept 2012
Settlers Destroy 20 Olive Trees south of Nablus
Jewish settlers Wednesday destroyed around 20 olive trees in Burin, a village south of the northern West Bank city of Nablus, according to a local activist.
Ghassan Douglas, in charge of settlements file at the Palestinian Authority in the northern part of the West Bank, said a number of settlers from the Israeli settlement of Yitzhar, built illegally on the village land, stormed an area in the village and destroyed around 20 olive trees.
He called upon the international parties and human rights organizations to pressure Israel to stop these non-stopping and ongoing settlers’ attacks.
7 sep 2012, 12:01 , Respect -
Settlers set Nablus orchard ablaze
NABLUS (Ma’an) -- A group of settlers set fire to an orchard in a northern West Bank village on Friday morning, eyewitnesses told Ma'an.
Residents of Eli settlement entered Qaryut village, torching olive and almond trees, villagers said. The people of Qaryit rushed to the site to douse the flames, they added.
On Wednesday, European Union Representatives said they were concerned at the rising number and severity of "continuous settler violence and deliberate provocations against Palestinian civilians."
The EU missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah called on Israel to prevent settler violence, protect Palestinians, and bring perpetrators to justice.
The statement came the day after vandals torched the wooden door of Jerusalem's Latrun Monastery and daubed pro-settler graffiti on the building's stone walls. British Middle East Minister Alistair Burt called the attack "a shocking and deliberately provocative act on a place of worship."
In August, PA official Ghassan Daghlas warned Palestinians to be cautious of settler attacks ahead of the evacuation of illegal Israeli outpost Migron, near Ramallah, which went ahead last week.
The evacuation of the illegal Ulpana outpost in June led to a spate of "price tag" attacks on mosques, Palestinians and their property.
8 sep 2012, 08:43 , Respect -
Settlers burn 130 olive trees in northern West Bank
EU representatives this week said they were concerned about "continuous settler violence."
QALQILIYA (Ma'an) -- Israeli settlers set fire to around 130 olive trees in a northern West Bank village on Friday, locals said.
Residents of Immanuel settlement set fire to the lands while residents were at Friday prayers, locals said.
Fawzi Al-Ghanem, owner of the land, told Ma'an that civil defense crews brought the blaze under control but only after his trees had been destroyed.
Israeli police also arrived on the scene, which is located adjacent to the Israeli settlement, he said.
Earlier Friday, residents of Eli settlement entered another village in the northern West Bank, Qaryut, torching olive and almond trees, villagers said.
On Wednesday, European Union representatives said they were concerned at the rising number and severity of "continuous settler violence and deliberate provocations against Palestinian civilians."
The EU missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah called on Israel to prevent settler violence, protect Palestinians, and bring perpetrators to justice.
9 sep 2012, 21:31 , Respect -
Official: 15 hurt in Nablus village after settler raid
Qusra lies near several settlements and outposts and is the site of regular assaults by their residents.
NABLUS (Ma’an) -- After Israeli settlers raided the northern West Bank village of Qusra on Saturday night, clashes with Israeli forces injured 15 Palestinians from the village, a local official said.
Around 30 settlers from the Esh Kodesh settler outpost descended on the village in the evening, PA official Ghassan Daghlas told Ma’an. They uprooted several olive trees and destroyed water wells, before assaulting some villagers, he added.
Israeli forces arrived and fired tear gas and rubber bullets, Daghlas continued. The clashes continued for several hours and left 15 people from the village injured, he said.
An Israeli army spokeswoman said forces used riot dispersal means to disperse a clash between Palestinians and Israelis, but said no one needed evacuation.
Qusra lies near several settlements and outposts and is the site of regular assaults by their residents.
Issam Kamal Odeh, 33, died from Israeli army fire in September 2011 after soldiers came to the village after a settler raid.
11 sep 2012, 10:52 , Respect -
Settlers break into Qasra village in Nablus and destroy olive trees
NABLUS, (PIC)-- A group of Israeli settlers stormed on Saturday evening, Qasra village in the south of Nablus city, and destroyed a number of olive trees.
PA official monitoring settler activities in West Bank Ghassan Daghlas said that over 30 settlers attacked the Palestinian citizens in the south of the village, and destroyed many olive trees and water well in the region.
Confrontations erupted between Palestinian citizens and the settlers in the region and the occupation army forces intervened to protect settlers, and fired tear gas and rubber bullets at Palestinian citizens, injuring 15 of them.
12 sep 2012, 09:29 , Respect -
PA official: Israel to confiscate 675 dunams of Nablus land
Olive trees pictured in Beit Jala.
NABLUS (Ma'an) -- Israeli authorities issued orders late Tuesday to confiscate 675 dunams of land in Nablus, having issued similar orders earlier in the day to confiscate 800 acres of land in a western area of the city, a PA official said.
Ghassan Doughlas, who monitors settlement activity in the northern West Bank, told Ma'an that the Israeli decision will confiscate land from Awarta and Burin villages in the center and east of Nablus.
Confiscation orders were delivered to the villages late on Tuesday, Doughlas said, adding that the land set to be annexed consists mainly of olive trees.
Israeli forces handed confiscation orders to several farmers in the Nablus villages of Beit Iba, al-Naqura, Zawatta and Ijnisinya on Tuesday, which will see 800 acres of land annexed in order to build an Israeli bypass road.
The dunam, a measurement unit dating back to the Ottoman empire, is equivalent to 1,000 square meters.
16 sep 2012, 22:26 , Respect -
Settlers uproot trees in al-Khalil
AL-KHALIL, (PIC)-- A group of Israeli settlers uprooted on Friday evening olive trees in the south of al-Khalil, while scores of them stormed al-Majour area near Dura.
Local sources said that the settlers had uprooted more than 15 olive trees, under the protection of occupation forces, near the town of Yatta, south of al-Khalil.
Eyewitnesses told "PIC" that hundreds of settlers broke into the districts of al-Majour and Rajam Abu Hilal in the South of Dura, south of al-Khalil, and toured near a Palestinian school in the area, protected by Israeli soldiers.
The groups of settlers stormed Wadi Abu Qamra in Dura on Friday morning causing concerns among citizens about the occupation intentions of setting up settlements in those areas.
West Bank's farmers demand creating external markets for olive oil
RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- A number of farmers in the West Bank demanded to find external markets for olive oil, with the coming olive season, and stop importing other olive oil from abroad.
Talal Chacour, a farmer from Assira village, told PIC's correspondent that some farmers still reserve quantities of last year's production of olive oil as a result of the absence of external markets and the low price of oil during the last season.
He pointed out that creating olive oil markets and preventing the authority from importing rival kinds of oil would raise the price of olive oil, thus may lead to taking more care of the lands and strengthening the steadfastness of the Palestinian farmers who have been suffering from settlements and price hikes.
The farmers in the West Bank have been complaining that some influential people in PA and greedy traders import large quantities of other kinds of oil during the olive harvest, and exploit the farmers' inability to sell their production in external markets.
25 sep 2012, 23:58 , Respect -
Nablus olive harvest to start Oct. 9 in restricted areas
The Badar family harvest olives in the village of Beitillu, northwest of Ramallah.
NABLUS (Ma'an) -- The olive harvest will start on Oct. 9 in restricted areas of Nablus, a PA official said Tuesday.
Ghassan Daghlas, who monitors settlement activity in the northern West Bank, told Ma'an that the Nablus governorate had informed farmers about the decision.
The set date will enable farmers and local committees to better organize against potential settler attacks, as many restricted access areas lie adjacent to settlements.
Settler attacks often increase around the time of the olive harvest season as settlers target olive trees and agricultural land.
Last October, the Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees organized groups of volunteers to protect West Bank farmers from attacks by settlers during the olive harvest.
Volunteers also helped farmers to harvest groves behind Israel's separation wall, as Palestinians must apply for permits from the Israeli military authorities to secure access to their land.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian affairs reported that over 2,500 olive trees were destroyed in September 2011, and 7,500 throughout 2011.
27 sep 2012, 23:43 , Respect -
Appeals for the protection of farmers in WB during olive harvest
RAMALLAH,(PIC)-- Many farmers in the West Bank appealed for protection against settlers' attacks during the olive season, after the repeated attacks on farmers near settlements, the latest of which resulted in the injury of three farmers east of Ramallah.
Mohammed Khalil, a farmer from southern Nablus, asked for the reason for not deterring the settlers and not stopping their attacks, calling for the protection of olive harvesters from the settlers' repeated attacks especially on villages south of Nablus, he told the PIC correspondent.
Farmers of the West Bank worry that their olive crops will be stolen or damaged, and worry that they would be victim of settler gangs or manipulating traders that cause heavy losses to them each year.
6 oct 2012, 17:49 , Respect -
Jewish settlers chop off 120 Palestinian trees
BETHLEHEM, (PIC)-- Jewish settlers damaged and chopped off around 120 olive trees and grapevines in Al-Khader village, south of Bethlehem, on Friday, local sources said.
Ahmed Salah, the coordinator of the anti wall and anti settlement activity in the village, told Quds Press that the settlers also bathed in one of the water wells in the same area after performing Talmudic rituals.
He said that the settlers damaged 100 olive trees planted two years ago by a charitable society for one of the farmers in the village and 20 grapevines owned by another farmer.
Salah said that the settlers drew the Israeli flag on a sign for an agricultural project that was established by a European society.
8 oct 2012, 00:08 , Respect -
IOF soldiers storm Al-Khalil, settlers cut off olive trees in Ramallah
AL-KHALIL, (PIC)-- Israeli occupation forces (IOF) stormed areas west of Al-Khalil on Sunday and installed roadblocks in an apparent attempt to arrest a number of “wanted” Palestinians.
Eyewitnesses told the PIC reporter that the IOF soldiers had lists of names with them and checked IDs of citizens in the area.
Meanwhile, Jewish settlers cut off olive trees in two villages to the west of Ramallah under IOF protection.
Local sources said that groups of settlers burst into the villages of Ras Karkar and Janiya and chopped off 20 olive trees.
In another incident, eyewitnesses told the PIC reporter that IOF soldiers scrutinized IDs of citizens near Beit El settlement.
Israeli soldiers and settlers attack Palestinian farmers in al-Khalil, Nablus
NABLUS/AL-KHALIL,(PIC)-- Israeli settlers continued their attacks in various parts of the West Bank, where they attacked this morning Palestinian farmers in the village of Kufr Qaddoum while on their way to their fields west of Nablus.
Local sources said that the settlers attacked the farmers in their fields, throwing stones and threatening them at gunpoint under the protection of Israeli soldiers, in the land located along the street that links the districts of Qalqilya and Nablus.
Meanwhile, Israeli soldiers and a large number of settlers from the settlement of Ma'oun established on lands confiscated from Palestinians east of Yatta, near al-Khalil, attacked on Saturday Palestinian farmers, while picking their olive trees in the Hamra area and Alrakiz and Srorah areas east of Yatta town.
Haj Mahmoud Yatim Rob'i told PIC's correspondent that settlers came to their fields and begun threatening them to leave their lands or the Israeli army will be called and that is what the settlers did, where Israeli soldiers came to the scene accompanied with police dogs and threatened the farmers to leave their land or the dogs would be unleashed on them.
We moved to our land in Alrkiz and Srorh near the Hamra area, but the soldiers and settlers also fired stun grenades and threw stones to scare us away, he added
Israeli soldiers and settlers have escalated their attacks against the residents and their lands in the eastern regions of Yatta, south of al-Khalil specifically after the Israeli war minister Ehud Barak's decision to evacuate eight Palestinian villages and to deport their residents in preparation for the establishment of a Israeli military site.
8 oct 2012, 19:58 , Respect -
Jewish settlers attack Palestinian farmers, damage olive trees
RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Jewish settlers attacked Palestinian farmers who were preparing to reap the fruits of their olive trees in Betello village to the west of Ramallah on Sunday afternoon.
Local sources said that Israeli occupation forces supported the settlers in a clash with the Palestinian farmers after the settlers damaged a number of olive trees before the harvest.
The settlers have intensified their assaults on olive trees over the past few days as about 300 trees were damaged in the process.
9 oct 2012, 11:46 , Respect -
Settlers Cut Dozens Of Olive Trees Near Nablus
Local sources reported that a group of armed extremist settlers of the Aliyea illegal settlement cut dozens of Olive trees that belong to residents of Qaryout village, south of the northern West Bank city of Nablus.
The settlers cut at least 120 olive trees that belong to twelve residents of the Qaryout village.
Eyewitnesses reported that the settlers used chainsaws to cut the trees.
The orchards that have been attacked are located near a number of illegal Israeli settlements.
Today, Tuesday October 8, marks the beginning of the olive harvest season in Palestine, especially in orchards that became totally isolated behind the Annexation Wall.
Settler attacks against Palestinian villagers and orchards usually escalate during the olive harvest season.
On Saturday, Palestinian medical sources in Hebron, in the southern part of the West Bank, reported that dozens of Palestinian villagers, picking their olive trees west of Hebron, were treated for the effects of tear gas inhalation after being attacked by Israeli soldiers.
The soldiers arrived at the scene as extremist settlers were harassing the residents and trying to force them out of their orchards, and used force against the residents instead of removing the settlers, eyewitnesses reported.
Dozens of attacks took place last year during the olive harvest season leading to several injuries, and in many cases extremist Israeli settlers picked the Palestinian orchards and took the harvest. Settlers also torched dozens of trees.
11 oct 2012, 10:58 , Respect -
Settlers Uproot 200 Olive Trees in Ramallah
On Wednesday 10th October, Palestinian media sources said that settlers uprooted 200 olive trees in Ramallah Governorate.
The sources also said that settlers raided al-Maghir village, northeast of Ramallah, aggressively attacked Palestinian farmers and uprooted 200 olive trees.
The attacks and assaults of settlers have increased lately, especially on farmers in the olive harvest season.
13 oct 2012, 12:59 , Respect -
B'Tselem suspects army not prepared to protect Palestinian olive harvesters
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- B'Tselem" human rights organization has documented a number of attacks carried out by the Israeli settlers and targeting farmers and olive groves throughout the West Bank.
The organization stated that the events raise suspicion that Security forces were not prepared to protect Palestinian olive harvesters and their property from settler violence.
The accumulation of incidents since the start of the olive harvest suggests that security forces were not adequately deployed to fulfill their duty to protect Palestinian olive harvesters and their property from settler violence, according to the organization's report.
Between October 7th and 10th, 2012, with the start of the West Bank's annual olive harvest, B'Tselem has documented five cases of injury to Palestinian farmers and their olive trees in the Ramallah and Nablus regions. In two incidents, settlers attacked farmers picking olives and damaged their yields.
There are three other direct attacks documented by B'Tselem that occurred while members of the security forces were present. All the locations where damage to trees was discovered are familiar to the security forces as areas where Palestinians are subject to repeated harassment by settlers.